I see that I am not the only one who fell in love with the book, looked forward to see it realized on the screen and is shocked out of her slippers when faced with the casting choices of the director.
Ewan McGregor is an unlikely choice, not perfect, but acceptable. He is an excellent actor after all and here, he is truly "acting" a bit. However, it all stops there. It seems like half the cast is African American/British. What? It 1917 in Russia and half the population is black. I would bet you anything 99% of the Russians died without seeing a single person of African origin back in those days.
This is a period drama. Mishka is a Russian man, and here is his full name: Mikhail Fyodorovich Mindich. Who would believe that if he is played by Fehinti Balogun? How plausible is it that half of the population in Russia is of African origin, even of nobility. (Apologies for reiterating.)
This is no different than Napoleon played by Will Smith, or Mahatma Gandhi by Leonardo di Caprio.
I managed to watch the first episode, for the sake of my love for the book. Seeing the hotel that I imagined so much while reading the book take shape on the screen made me happy. But it stopped there. The second episode started with Mishka (?) and ended all for me.
I don't believe I will continue watching and it is such a shame for this could have been such an amazing piece of work with such amazing source material.
Ewan McGregor is an unlikely choice, not perfect, but acceptable. He is an excellent actor after all and here, he is truly "acting" a bit. However, it all stops there. It seems like half the cast is African American/British. What? It 1917 in Russia and half the population is black. I would bet you anything 99% of the Russians died without seeing a single person of African origin back in those days.
This is a period drama. Mishka is a Russian man, and here is his full name: Mikhail Fyodorovich Mindich. Who would believe that if he is played by Fehinti Balogun? How plausible is it that half of the population in Russia is of African origin, even of nobility. (Apologies for reiterating.)
This is no different than Napoleon played by Will Smith, or Mahatma Gandhi by Leonardo di Caprio.
I managed to watch the first episode, for the sake of my love for the book. Seeing the hotel that I imagined so much while reading the book take shape on the screen made me happy. But it stopped there. The second episode started with Mishka (?) and ended all for me.
I don't believe I will continue watching and it is such a shame for this could have been such an amazing piece of work with such amazing source material.