Without Reservations, ‘horror Story Hotel’ Is Worth Checking Out

The denizens of the Hotel Cortez are, to paraphrase the inevitable Eagles song you’ll hear at the end of Wednesday’s American Horror Story: The fifth installment of the hit FX anthology series drips with atmosphere, mystique, murder, vampirism, kinky sex and Lady Gaga, who joins the ensemble cast this year as The Countess. The premiere episode begins with the arrival of a pair of pretty Swedish teenagers who immediately regret having made reservations at the Cortez, an eerily lifeless, faded art deco palace from another time. [...] the Countess, Sally and Donovan continue using the Cortez as their own personal playpen, with lots of toys, lots of group sex, and a place to take advantage of those who think they can disappear from their normal lives for a while and indulge themselves in bad behavior. [...] one day, the residents learn the hotel has been sold to Will Drake (Cheyenne Jackson) and they all worry they’ll be cast out on the street and their party of depravity will come to an end. Other cast members scheduled for future episodes include Darren Criss, Max Greenfield, Naomi Campbell and Madchen Amick. [...] the semi-comic grand guignol melodrama has been set in a haunted house, an asylum, a coven and a freak show. On paper, at least, the notion of a hotel offers Murphy and Falchuk an especially wide playing field, since any number of guests can easily check in. David Wiegand is the TV critic and an assistant managing editor of the San Francisco Chronicle.