The Knick

I'm surprised that this Cinemax series wasn't more successful. It has everything going for it like solid writing, acting, and high quality production. Set in 1900 New York City, the Knick is short for the Knickerbocker hospital. Just like other businesses, hospitals have to make a profit and survive. The Knick is a 1900 version of St. Elsewhere about a struggling hospital. The first season has ten episodes starring Clive Owen as Dr. Thackeray, a renowned surgeon and secret drug addict. Andre Holland plays Dr. Algernon Edwards, an African American surgeon trained at Harvard and worked in Europe before coming to the Knick. Juliet Rylance plays Cornelia Robertson, the hospital administrator and daughter of its owner. Cara Seymour plays a nun with quite a secret that you won't see coming with complexity and devotion. The rest of the cast is stellar but I can't name them all here. Eve Hewson is perfect as the West Virginia transplanted nurse who knows and protects Thackeray. This series is almost flawless and perfect but I can't understand why I didn't see or know about it before. This series deserved some respect and accolades like other series.

I would not imagine that a series equivalent to unholy alliance of House and Sherlock would be on Cinemax. The Knick is a collection of dysfunctional characters that roam the street of last century New York, dressed as doctors, nurses, and even high class patrons. It's an utter delight to see their shenanigans as well as depravities. This is the period of obviousness, medical advancement, racial profiling and all of these are presented like Sherlock with morphine overdose.

Everyone is flawed here, even if their motive might be just, the moral ambiguity plagued any on-screen persona. Clive Owen plays as Dr. Thackery, the head surgeon of the less profitable partial altruistic hospital The Knick. I can't imagine Clive Owen without the stache anymore, this is a character with such determination that the only drive rivaling it is his addiction. Other notable character is Dr. Edwards by Andre Holland who's a brilliant colored doctor who must deal with racism and his own vices.

The pace wastes no time to introduce many subplots and characters. It's rare that nearly every perspective is appealing. On other series they have strong leads and probably one or two well written supporting cast. This is not so with The Knick, audience would find something endearing in the unorthodox characters as they all have their unique slightly destructive charm.

With Steven Soderbergh at helm, the artistic vibe just oozes from the dirty New York. Continuous scenes happen so often that they can adsorb audience in the immersive atmosphere. The soundtracks are intriguingly contagious, they are modernized version of old school tune. It's strange, catchy and really set up the quirky mood. Furthermore, it has some of the most convincing practical effects for anatomical and cringe purpose.

The Knick is a top shelf drama, administered with style and not only embracing all of its undesirable oddities, but put them in proud display.

Every single episode is directed by the legendary Soderbergh so with each frame you can feel the drama or tension shining through. It seems like it's all natural lighting in most scenes which makes it beautiful and authentic. And the real gem..Clive Owen. He was born to play Thackeray. The knick is an incredible series with too real medical scenes that I warn you can be hard for the weak stomachs. The second season has been just as good as the first.

This is a must watch with an excellent cast and acting. The procedures are phenomenal and awe inspiring. Do your self a favor and watch this incredible show

The Knick is an excellent series that sadly ends to fast. If it was up to me they could have made much more seasons because the subject is a bottomless pit. The show is about discovering new techniques of surgery and medicine at the turn of the 20th century. I'm glad I could just watch it on television then living it for myself because let's be honest there are some pretty scary procedures in The Knick. It doesn't look very sterile at all. And having a surgery in an auditorium while a bunch of people are looking at you isn't my idea of a safe environment for a surgery. But the show itself is fabulous with great acting performances and with an excellent story. All actors and actresses were great in The Knick. I really wished there would be more then two seasons because The Knick is so much better then most of the other shows that seems to keep going on forever. Certainly one of my favorite shows of this year.

The Knick is a television show anyone interested in very relevant topics of our day should not miss. On the exterior, The Knick is a historical look at early 1900's New York City and the plot is based around a newly promoted head surgeon, Dr. Thackery (Clive Owen), of The Knickerbocker Hospital. The medical aspect of the show is truly fascinating, intense and shocking. The surgeries shown on the show are not for the faint of heart and have the look of a butcher shop rather then what we currently expect in an operating room.

The sets are beautiful and well done to portray a century year old time period. I have heard complaints about the music and blurry vision of some of the cameras and shots that Director Steven Soderbergh incorporates throughout the show. If you want a clean cut narrative with perfectly clean shots and no unique sound, then feel free to go watch network television. I find the electronic music very interesting and almost a sort of heart beat to the show. The blurry shots are absolutely justified as this world is dimly lit and fuzzy on its own accord. The music and cinematography do it great justice.

The acting on the show is also top notch as Clive Owen leads a team that is in sync throughout. Andre Holland is a revelation as Dr. Algernon Edwards, a African American doctor literally fighting for respect in an extremely racist medical world. These two characters and their relationship form the essence of much of the show's themes which are very relevant even today. Beneath each character there lies more depth then you will receive in most television. Dr Thackery is burdened by his past and his temptations, yet is dedicated to saving the lives of his patients and not selling out. It is a gray world at The Knick and one in which lies death, drugs, sex, racism and deceit, and at the same time brings us heroics, ethics, humanity and discovery.