MEDIA MEDITATION #1: JAZZ, SEX, AND MURDER: LIFE ON THE BOARDWALK

Television has recently been turned upside down by the release of the new hit  HBO series Boardwalk Empire. This Scorsese directed saga has achieved the highest ratings for any HBO television series premiere since 2004.

Steve Buscemi as  Nucky Thompson conducting some "business"

 

                            Image courtousey of sun-sential.com

Boardwalk Empire has truly stolen the spotlight with its star studded cast and visionary directing. This period drama focuses on Enoch "Nucky" Thompson, a character portrayed by award winning actor Steve Buscemi, and his rise to power  in Altantic City during the 1920's. The show is centered around, Nucky, a corrupt political figure who has risen to power to create an empire of gambling, prostitution, liquor, and murder.

Check out this preview of the first episode



As you can see, Boardwalk Empire is anything but uninteresting. The show is akin to Scorsese's other work; plenty of the old "ultraviolence", sex, and action... lots of sweet uncensored action. The plot thickens throughout the series as famous gangsters are subtly introduced one by one such as James "Jimmy" Darmody played by Michael Pitt, and Al Capone who is played by Stephen Graham.

Overall, I would say that Boardwalk Empire is one of the best HBO series ever produced. The acting is fantastic, the dialogue, costumes and sets are amazing and the directing... simply outstanding. This truly is some of Scorsese's best work to date, so put on your fuzzy slippers, grab a friend and take a seat, because Boardwalk Empire is going to knock you off your feet!                  

But hey, don't take my word for it, check out some of the reviews for Boardwalk Empire linked below...

http://www.metacritic.com/tv/boardwalk-empire

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3ied4f9346f54dc08e7bd75dac5d4ecc0f

http://www.tv.com/boardwalk-empire/show/75748/summary.html?q=boardwalk%20empire&tag=search_results;title;1