In 1922, a Russian Count is sentenced to house arrest at the Hotel Metropol Moscow, one of thousands of former aristocrats rounded up in the wake of the Bolshevik Revolution. Most were killed or sent to die in Siberia. Thanks to one fortuitous circumstance, the Count avoids such harsh punishment. Instead, he must move from his luxury suite to the cramped, chilly servant’s quarters on the sixth floor. This is his world for 32 years. If he ever sets one foot outside, he will be shot on sight.
I reviewed the book A Gentleman in Moscow in early 2022 (along with The Lincoln Highway, author Amor Towles’ later novel (Book Reviews: Amor Towles – The Lincoln Highway & A Gentleman in Moscow). It’s always exciting when a favorite read gets adapted for the screen. In this case, Showtime exceeds expectations and delivers an enchanting experience you won’t want to end.
Ewan McGregor is Alexander Rostov (honorifics such as Count are no longer permitted in communist Russia) in a career-defining performance. Please let there be some Awards recognition. He’s a charming, humble lifelong bachelor, who appreciates the finer things in life. He’s also crafty, combative, paternal, and adaptive. Rostov’s life in the bubble is popped when the willowy actress, Anna Urbanova (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), saunters into the lobby. She’s wily and commanding with a detached air of diffidence. They start with occasional hook-ups to eventually caring deeply for each other. Their chemistry is fun, even more so when you realize they are married in real life.
But it’s the two young girls of the Hotel Metropol that upend Rostov’s routine, test his will, and ultimately bring him joy and purpose. He first meets precocious nine-year-old Nina (Alexa Goodall) who knows every nook and cranny of the hotel and even has the master key (something that will later come in oh so handy to Rostov). Years later Nina drops off her five-year-old daughter, Sofia (Billie Gadsdon), asking Rostov to take care of her temporarily. Sofia is wary and sheepish at first, but soon has the entire hotel community looking after her. The two girls steal the show and Rostov’s relationships with them are the endearing, heartwarming center of the saga. (Gadsdon’s sister Beau is also superb as the older Sophia.)
With the period’s brutal history unfolding outside the doors, the hotel conjures up Old-World elegance. The lobby is an opulent cocoon with a rotating parade of revolutionaries, royalty, movie stars, generals, and intellectuals. All looked after dutifully by the hotel staff. Rostov walks in both worlds from brilliantly holding court with these dignitaries, to taking their order as a waiter and sharing his immense knowledge of wine. The series is faithful to its source material and strikes a delicate balance between societal collapse outside and love and hope inside.
A Gentleman in Moscow has elements of history, parenting, romance, humor, and a splash of Inspector Poirot, all culminating in a challenge to Rostov’s character: does he escape and defect to the west or does the love of country and a woman keep him in Russia?
(A Gentleman in Moscow’s eight episodes are now streaming on Paramount+.)
D² Rating: ◼◼◼◼☐
Trivia: McGregor won the Golden Globe for Best Actor for his dual roles as brothers in what 2017 series?
Answer below
Answer: Fargo, season 3. He met his future wife then who also appeared in the show.