Empire Falls is a sprawling novel from Richard Russo. The first episode of this HBO adaptation paints a picture of a small town dominated by the wealthy Whiting family. There is also a river that serves as a metaphor for life.
The male Whiting's had money but married poorly. Their wives made life a misery for them
Empire Falls is in decline, the factories have shut down. Francine Whiting (Joanne Woodward) is the wealthy widow who throws out crumbs to the townsfolk.
One of them is Miles Roby (Ed Harris) a placid man who manages the diner Francine owns. When she dies he will get to own it.
Miles seems unambitious and content. Someone who wants to avoid the highs and lows of life. A placid man who never truly loved his ex wife Janine (Helen Hunt.) She is finding excitement after losing weight with an older man.
However Miles is haunted by childhood memories regarding his late mother and an affair she had with a wealthy suitor in Martha's Vineyard one summer.
Miles father Max (Paul Newman) is a wastrel always looking for a handout.
The first part of Empire Falls has a starry cast and it does not take long to work out who is who thanks to the narrator. It feels like a novel that has come to the screen and rather faithful to the source material.
You do sense that something is being held back, the episode is hinting at something as that is more to do with the character Philip Seymour Hoffman plays.
The weak link was surprisingly Paul Newman. His character of Max was similar to the one he played in film's such as Nobody's Fool. Only to find out that movie was by the same author. Maybe Newman should ha played a different character.
The casting of Harris means that somewhere along the line, Miles will flip sooner or later.
There are several subplots such as the arrogant high school jock who is bullying a poor kid who has a history of abuse. That part of the story did not work for me too well. Just too many stereotypes of US high school kids. The jock is a foul mouthed jerk and is the ex boyfriend of Miles daughter.
The male Whiting's had money but married poorly. Their wives made life a misery for them
Empire Falls is in decline, the factories have shut down. Francine Whiting (Joanne Woodward) is the wealthy widow who throws out crumbs to the townsfolk.
One of them is Miles Roby (Ed Harris) a placid man who manages the diner Francine owns. When she dies he will get to own it.
Miles seems unambitious and content. Someone who wants to avoid the highs and lows of life. A placid man who never truly loved his ex wife Janine (Helen Hunt.) She is finding excitement after losing weight with an older man.
However Miles is haunted by childhood memories regarding his late mother and an affair she had with a wealthy suitor in Martha's Vineyard one summer.
Miles father Max (Paul Newman) is a wastrel always looking for a handout.
The first part of Empire Falls has a starry cast and it does not take long to work out who is who thanks to the narrator. It feels like a novel that has come to the screen and rather faithful to the source material.
You do sense that something is being held back, the episode is hinting at something as that is more to do with the character Philip Seymour Hoffman plays.
The weak link was surprisingly Paul Newman. His character of Max was similar to the one he played in film's such as Nobody's Fool. Only to find out that movie was by the same author. Maybe Newman should ha played a different character.
The casting of Harris means that somewhere along the line, Miles will flip sooner or later.
There are several subplots such as the arrogant high school jock who is bullying a poor kid who has a history of abuse. That part of the story did not work for me too well. Just too many stereotypes of US high school kids. The jock is a foul mouthed jerk and is the ex boyfriend of Miles daughter.
