Anastasia is titled after the story of Anna Anderson, who was pulled out of a canal in Berlin after she attempted suicide. She later claimed to be the only survivor of the Russian Royal family, the Grand Duchess of Russia, whose family was murdered by the Bolsheviks.
Whether you take the story as an analogy for the fairy tale nature of Maggie’s (Kelly Macdonald) desires to rise to the role of Princess in King Nucky’s (Steve Buscemi) court, or a more complex statement on the conflict of the working class with America’s self-made aristocracy, it framed an episode in which there were so many brilliant technical and visual achievements that it’s become easy to understand why Boardwalk Empire is one of the greatest artistic endeavors on television.
Take Chalky’s (Michael K. Williams) interrogation speech for example. It’s the kind of moment that defines a series.
Whether you take the story as an analogy for the fairy tale nature of Maggie’s (Kelly Macdonald) desires to rise to the role of Princess in King Nucky’s (Steve Buscemi) court, or a more complex statement on the conflict of the working class with America’s self-made aristocracy, it framed an episode in which there were so many brilliant technical and visual achievements that it’s become easy to understand why Boardwalk Empire is one of the greatest artistic endeavors on television.
Take Chalky’s (Michael K. Williams) interrogation speech for example. It’s the kind of moment that defines a series.
- 10/11/2010
- by Michael Mahoney
- TVovermind.com
This week’s Boardwalk Empire was a rather dour affair with dark overtones serving as harbingers of things to come. Primarily focusing on the attempts to deal with the lone surviving witness of Jimmy’s (Michael Pitt) liquor heist fiasco, we got to see a bit of Van Alden’s (Michael Shannon) true colors as well as take a fascinating tour through 1920′s medical practices (let’s just say I’m glad they have pills for that now).
Van Alden reminds me of a preacher who spends his entire career on the pulpit bashing homosexuality only to finally admit that he’s gay. He’s all twisted and knotted up behind a veil of propriety and rules while secretly repressing some sick…something. His method of getting Rothstein’s lackey to literally “open up” wasn’t just over the top, it takes some sort of crazy to stick your bare hand in someone’s gut…...
Van Alden reminds me of a preacher who spends his entire career on the pulpit bashing homosexuality only to finally admit that he’s gay. He’s all twisted and knotted up behind a veil of propriety and rules while secretly repressing some sick…something. His method of getting Rothstein’s lackey to literally “open up” wasn’t just over the top, it takes some sort of crazy to stick your bare hand in someone’s gut…...
- 10/5/2010
- by Michael Mahoney
- TVovermind.com
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