Boardwalk Empire (TV Series) Boardwalk Empire (2010) User Reviews

All I Can Say Is "Wow"

[g-bodyl · 9/10 · 19 September 2013]

Boardwalk Empire has the potential to become television's Goodfellas or Godfather Part 2. This pilot episode, directed by Martin Scorcese, is very hooking and addictive for starters. It's masterfully acted, has the authentic feel for the time period, has a gripping story, and just looks like a world you would want to be in.....maybe. This series has an all-star cast led by Steve Buscemi who is excellent, Michael Pitt, Michael Shannon, and Kelly Macdonald.

This pilot introduces us to Nucky Thompson who is from Atlantic City and is half gangster, half politician. On the eve of Prohibition, he makes a deal that will involve illegal booze in the city. Meanwhile, we meet a young hotshot just done with the war and wants more to do and of course the specialized-trained task forces designed just for Prohibition.

Overall, this is an excellent pilot. I am looking forward to the next three seasons and I hope each episode is just as good as the pilot. I also like how they took so much care to make this episode very historically accurate. They certainly did their research. I rate this episode 9/10.

Very good

[Egzan · 10/10 · 19 February 2020]

Probably one of the best pilot episodes ever. Great from start to finish with the brilliant directing of Martin Scorsese

Wow!

[chaseduffy1 · 10/10 · 6 January 2018]

What an amazing show this is. We are hooked right away. I liked everything about it.

Steve Buscemi is incredible and really deserves any awards he gets for this. The rest of the cast are also great but he really stands out as awesome. Always been a fan of his work and this is among his best roles ever. Up there with Fargo. Well done to whoever cast this show because like I said the others are also very good in their roles.

The writing is amazing, with a gripping and believable story, true to the era it is set in. Speaking of which the props, sets, clothing, cars... everything about this movie is very meticulous and well done.

I love this show!

Masterful acting, conflicted protagonist, exquisite dual visuals, immersive production, intriguing and exciting story, irresistible bitter candy jar, mythical universe

[igoatabase · 21 September 2010]

Boardwalk Empire's pilot aired, the first leaf of autumn fell. Scheduling it at the end of summer was a bright idea. The show won't change your life but its potential is undeniable. It has most of the materials required by a top notch entertainment production.

Steve Buscemi is a viewer magnet and when I read he would portray the protagonist, Enoch "Nucky" Thompson, I was instantly hooked. From his unique voice to his strange physical attributes the man is a pool of natural talent to himself. As expected his performance was the enlightenment of the episode. His palette of emotions painted the scenes with so many different colors and shapes that at times it was almost like watching René Magritte's surreal work in motion. Moreover it was almost perfectly integrated to well polished and designed studio sets. A few minor issues but nothing to prevent the immersion. Who's responsible ? Not Tom Jones obviously so I suspect the usual creative freaks, from the confirmed executive producers to the artistic director. But beside these visual considerations Nucky is also a deep, conflicted and intriguing character. Covering the prohibition era is not original but following one of its puppet master can only be exciting. It's the eternal battle between good and evil. If you had his power, what would you do ? Who would you be ? An incorruptible politician or an evil persona motivated by easy money and obsessed with tainted silk ? Buscemi's ambivalent acting blurred the lines between the possible answers to these questions. One minute he touches your heart and soul like a crying man, the next he parades with the devil and succumbs to temptation of the flesh.

Like a twister Buscemi & Nucky dragged with them an impressive amount of superlatives. First the editing was both original and well executed. Forget the over used reverse order concept and enjoy a puzzling sequence of scenes brilliantly blended together. Second the mix between superficial and authentic elements is fascinating. It's even mesmerized by the duality and charisma of the characters. Third the cast is charming, convincing and eclectic. My only regret is that most women are young and beautiful. In my humble opinion it made the story less credible so I hope the minor and unexploited roles will blossom. Fourth beside the drama it was also a lot of fun. The shadowing scene is already cult and was just hilarious. Let's also not forget the funny and sexy ride involving Nucky and his "friend" Angela Darmody, sweatily portrayed by Aleksa Palladino. Fifth you should also be shocked by the violence of some scenes. Faint-hearted audience, pass out.

Last but not least between these questionable and brutal moments one can only be moved by the poetry and creepiness of a few ideas. They actually reminded me of Carnivàle and its mesmerizing mythology. From the delicate babies to the girl corpse it's almost like if they were trying to send us a subliminal message. Are we the pedestrian behind the window ? Knock, knock, Nucky !

"You can't be half a gangster"

[lesedicarlinphaahla · 9/10 · 13 July 2020]

Wow! That's how you do a pilot! 72 minutes and a lot has been setup for future episodes.

First and foremost, the ambition of Jimmy Darmody. Although Nucky challenged him to find opportunities, "This is America!", I bet he didn't expect Jimmy to do what he did! I suppose Jimmy's right, Nucky is running with the big dogs - real gangsters from Chicago, and so his kind-hearted nature may prove detrimental to him and his organization in later episodes.

I suspect a romance down the line with Margaret and Nucky, her story is incredibly painful to watch. It was quite satisfying to see she has Nucky in her corner.

I love the fact that we're shown a YOUNG Al Capone, this gives the series a lot of room to develop his character over the 5 seasons, as opposed to having started with his established criminal status.

Overall, a brilliant episode. But I wasn't expecting any less since Terence Winter wrote my favourite episodes from my favourite TV series of all time, The Sopranos (Long Term Parking, The Second Coming & Pine Barrens.) Having seen Mad Men and The Sopranos I'm quite excited to go on this journey with Boardwalk, from the only other executive producer of The Sopranos with a quality, serial drama. No disrespect to Rob Green and Mitch Burgess who have Blue Bloods, but it's not the same.

Brilliant

[peter-atkinson1990 · 9/10 · 16 April 2020]

Finally started Boardwalk Empire. I'm hooked after the first episode. As a huge gangster film/tv fan this speaks to me perfectly. The episode has a who's who of Prohibition era gangsters so It helped following characters of the bat. Scorsese is my favourite director of all time and again he doesn't disappoint. There are some weird cuts and edits which someone mentioned in an earlier review but other than that, one of the best pilots I have ever seen. Can't wait to see if the remainder holds up to this quality! 👍👍

Looking Great!

[cuddlesatusc · 9/10 · 27 March 2021]

This show has a lot of potential growing for it. I'm not sure if that's because of Scorsese's masterful direction and addictive editing but I this show has some great names. Terence Winter , prominent writer from The Sopranos, Scorsese, as a producer, Tim Van Patten, as producer as well as director for this series and many episodes in The Sopranos; all that jumbled in with a stellar cast: Steve Buscemi, Michael Shannon, and Michael Stulhberg just to name a few. And overall it's gorgeous to look at with the cinematography of the show. My one concern is that Scorsese's direction makes this look too good and I'm eager to see how future directors handle this series.

Fantastic

[peterrenn · 10/10 · 21 June 2022]

Love the show and specially Buscemi is awesome. Even tho it's fantasty but many people ( Capone, lucky Luciano..) existed and in real life And started to rise due to prohibition. I'm sure the story isn't that unreal after all considering life back in the day.

Love it and it's getting better with every season.

Wow

[thomassegura · 10/10 · 5 February 2021]

Excellent pilot episode directed by Martin Scorsese. Outstanding and nuanced performance by Steve Buscemi. The camera work is amazing in this episode.

Good pilot

[raj-bhullar · 8/10 · 31 May 2022]

It's a good pilot but not great. The acting, costumes and the atmosphere is great. The story is intriguing but I came in with a lot of high expectations seeing the good scores. Not that I was disappointed I thought that the pilot will be crazy good but it was just "good" not great. The story is just good enough to seep you into the next episode. Just good enough being the key words. Decent pilot just enough to get you hooked. I think the story could have been a bit better. It's not bad it's just not crazy good as I expected it from the reviews which gave them 9s and 10s.

Boardwalk Empire

[Prismark10 · 7/10 · 11 May 2020]

The pilot episode of Boardwalk Empire was directed by Martin Scorsese at a cost of $18 million. I assume they put all the set up costs, sets and actors fees on the first episode.

Set in prohibition era Atlantic City of 1920. Enoch 'Nucky' Thompson (Steve Buscemi) a politician who is also the criminal kingpin of the city. He operates the liquor boot smuggling and gambling business.

One of his main right hand man is Jimmy Darmody who has returned from the war and wants to quickly climb the ranks of Nucky's operations.

Federal agents are also taking an interest in Atlantic City. God fearing Nelson Van Alden tries to recruit Jimmy.

There is a lot of world building taking place in the opening episode with real life politicians and gangsters. With Scorsese as Executive Producer onboard I suspect this will be more Goodfellas than The Godfather. There are flashes of violence and some bad men.

Carrying the opener is Buscemi, he has to be both thoughtful and dazzle. Nucky is an amoral hypocrite, the opening scene has him addressing a temperance meeting.

"Never let the truth get in the way of a good story."

[Hey_Sweden · 9/10 · 3 July 2023]

Veteran actor Steve Buscemi ("Fargo", "Reservoir Dogs", etc.) here receives another lead role that he can savor: Enoch "Nucky" Thompson, the crooked county treasurer in Atlantic City circa 1920. It's the onset of Prohibition, and yet Nucky has his hands in all sorts of criminal activities, including liquor smuggling. As we see Nucky strike that balance between life as a politician and life as a gangster, his employee Jimmy Darmody (Michael Pitt, "Seven Psychopaths"), a WWI veteran, is determined to prove his worth within the organization.

We meet such legendary mob figures as Arnold Rothstein, Lucky Luciano, and Al Capone in this enjoyable crime saga. It makes sense that Martin Scorsese, one of the executive producers, should be the one to direct this 73 minute pilot, and he gives it real cinematic flair. One can see how much attention was paid to detail: you really do feel like you've been dropped into 1920s America - costumes, sets, vehicles, and everything. (At the time, this was the most expensive pilot ever shot for a TV series.). Scorsese and writer / series creator Terence Winter ('The Sopranos') make this great adult entertainment, never shying away from BRUTAL violence and even including a smattering of nudity.

Buscemi, as always, is a pleasure to watch, but the supporting cast is equally strong: Pitt, Michael Shannon ("The Iceman") as a hard-nosed federal agent, Kelly Macdonald ("No Country for Old Men") as a hard-luck immigrant with an abusive husband, Shea Whigham ("Splinter") as a lawman in Nucky's pocket, Michael Kenneth Williams ('The Wire') as the briefly seen Chalky White, and Dabney Coleman ("Nine to Five") in a nice cameo as Commodore Kaestner.

This pilot is a very effective means of reeling in the viewer and making them interested in continuing with the series.

Nine out of 10.

Potential abounds.

[MrDancingGecko · 7/10 · 7 October 2012]

I won't bore you with what the plot of the show is, you can read that for yourself in the profile on the main page, I'll just give you my impression of the episode, the idea of the show and it's production.

With the excellent Steve Buscemi and equally good supporting cast this has all the hallmarks of being a great series.

Beautifully designed sets evoke the era of the start of the prohibition period in which it is set. The attention to detail of the boardwalk with, amongst others, the sight of a store front offering the opportunity to see premature babies in incubators for 25c, is extremely well researched.

The usual issues of introducing new characters to the audience are evident, with not enough time spent getting to know each that well, is to be expected. There is however just enough to flesh them out, with plenty of scope for further development.

I do however have a couple of issues with the production itself.

The are several continuity issues evident, which mainly, though not wholly, arise from the attempt to portray the period. The main problem being the amount of smoking that occurs during the episode. It contains numerous cuts from one shot to the next where a character is puffing on a cigarette at one moment, then not in the next shot and visa versa. Or expelling smoke from a draw that had ended in the previous shot with them exhaling. Small I know, but irritating.

The biggest issue I had though was the lackluster direction by Scorsese. At times it appears that a stage play had been shot. The editing is all over the place. There are shots that are meant to convey an atmosphere that fail, camera positions and angles that look hackneyed and at times amateurish in their placement. I expected better from a man with such a strong body of work.

Problems aside, I will be watching the next episode, my interest piqued enough by the opening one. As I stated in the title for this piece, potential abounds.

I declare Prohibition on 10 star reviews.

[JonathanDWestbay · 2/10 · 21 September 2018]

Steve Buscemi was great in movies like Reservoir Dogs and Fargo. I had high expectations because of him, plus all the positive reviews. Boy, was I disappointed. I could only get through the pilot episode, when I expected to enjoy the whole first season, and maybe more.

The pacing was slow, and the storyline lacking. There really weren't any surprises. The jokes were not very amusing, and the constant dropping of F-bombs caused them to lose their sting.

Two positive things I can say. The period sets were fairly impressive, and the music by Vince Giordano's band was pretty good.

Two out of ten stars because I need to offset the high ratings. It's a three at best.

Fantastic start

[TheDonaldofDoom · 13 July 2018]

The pilot achieves what I hoped it would and plenty more, absorbing you in the world with its eye-popping visuals, relevant soundtrack and detailed set design. Thanks to Scorcese's style of cinematography incorporating freeze frames and sweeping shots, it really immerses you not just in the era, but in the atmosphere.

Using its extended run time to introduce a whole array of characters, the pilot effectively develops many of them, showing multiple layers to them rather than a caricature. Not many of Boardwalk's characters are nice people, but most of them have their nuances. I was struck by how Nucky was fine about profiting from an illegal drink that kills people, yet has the compassion to help people out on an individual level. The character I noticed didn't have any nuance was Hans, who is the stereotypical abusive husband. But since he's dead by the end of the episode, that won't prove a problem going forward.

Boardwalk Empire is a must stop

[imatthenry · 8/10 · 15 December 2022]

Another one of the recommendations from Instagram Reels to revive good series that have fallen into oblivion.

This one promises to be as good as Peaky Blinders and Sons of Anarchy, I'm really looking forward to the next episodes. This pilot episode opened the series spectacularly.

Superb direction by Martin Scorsese. I lack words to describe this masterpiece. The episode runs so fluidly that you almost don't notice time passing, to the point of wanting to marathon the series at once.

Steve Buscemi as Enoch "Nucky" Thompson was a master, his talent will no doubt raise the bar for the series even further.

The writing is amazing, with an engaging story, true to the era in which it takes place. Not to mention the scenography, super meticulous and well crafted. It immerses you in the decade with its stunning visuals, relevant soundtrack and detailed set design.

I recommend it to all lovers of a script after the First World War filled with drama of gangsters, politicians and police. If you come from Peaky Blinders and Goodfellas, Boardwalk Empire is a must stop.

gold

[JustHavingALook · 9/10 · 14 May 2023]

Maybe it's because I'm sucker for anything remotely related to the mob.

Maybe because the amazing wardrobe, production design (CGI or not) and the details.

Nonetheless we are still talking about 1 hour of solid cinema, directed by the MAN. Martin Scorsese himself. Not sure how impactful his directing style his vs the work done in postproduction, but the scenes are so smooth and well paced and... they just make sense and keep you hooked like it rarely happens.

Buscemi acting is top notch, such a wide variety of emotions that really help setting the character (his past, his present and what he wants from the future) the sleazy social circles mean conflicts and drama. Love it.

Decent show horrible depiction from reality

[bogota909 · 5/10 · 20 August 2020]

I was liking the show until certain actors playing roles like Benny Siegel ,Al Capone , did a horrible depiction and then how nucky Thompson just gave it all up for his nephew ..... GTFO that wasnt accurate or believable how the show whined up

A thoughtful iteration of the "veterans-are-suckers" kinda sensibility

[jgcorrea · 13 December 2022]

Boardwalk Empre begins in Atlantic City in 1920, the era of Prohibition. On the eve of Prohibition, state treasurer Enoch "Nucky" Thompson (Steve Buscemi) searches for a formula to make the most of it. Billed as the undisputed "Boss" of Atlantic City, Nucky has to deal with his double life as a politician and bootlegger. In a city defined by corrupt politicians and where vicious power rules, Nucky must contend between a relentless federal agent, his ambitions, and gangsters, including Arnold Rothstein, Lucky Luciano and Al Capone. What an acting line-up! The Pilot was enough to convince me to commit to the series. There are a couple of extreme Dutch angle shots that linger in the memory. (FYI a Dutch tilt, canted angle, or oblique angle is a type of camera shot that has a noticeable tilt on the camera's "x-axis." It's a camera technique that was used by the German Expressionists in the 1920s - so it's not actually Dutch.)

Pretty good start, but far from perfect

[Red_Identity · 19 September 2010]

Broadwalk Empire has been the most awaited new show of the season, simply because it has an impressive cast of movie stars and has Martin Scorsese under it's wing. What did I think?

The Pilot was certainly stylized as one would expect. The sets, costumes, and the cinematography are all very impressive, and one can see this show is one that cost a lot of money. Saying that, it is expected from Scorsese as a director, but the Pilot was pretty much what one would expect as well. The episode was fast-paced, introducing a lot of characters, and it did entertain for most of the episode. However, it also remained distant and cold in it's approach, maybe because it was a little too fast-paced and had way too many plots going on. It remained interesting always, but not always as engaging as I would have thought from seeing the critical acclaim it has garnered. Steve Buscemi is pretty good, but I actually think he was the weakest of the cast. To be honest, none of the cast impressed me much, it all seemed like it was clearly an exercise in 'acting'. Actually, the real stand-out to me was the most unknown from the main cast, which was Michael Pitt. He is fantastic and held up most of the Pilot for me.

All in all, I will continue watching, but it already seems like the series is overdoing it, and it was surprisingly not as impressive as I would have thought. Let's just see where it goes from here.