The Penguin Episode 4: Cent'Anni (Spoiler Thread)

You know, seeing Mark Strong in-person, I can now buy that he's a younger version of John Turturro, despite Strong not being that much younger than Turturro in real-life.

Also, in one motion, Sofia may have just done Batman a favor with how she dealt with the Falcone family.
 
Last edited:
Wow!!! Mark Strong and Christin Milioti together on screen. Just acting at its finest. I thought John Turturro was ok in the Batman as Carmine but Strong makes Carmine Falcone scary. I thought he was going to strangle Sophia. That Penguin……… What an opportunist.
 
Cristin Milioti the entire episode:

eHA61Rk.gif
 
This episode was great and Cristin Milioti's performance was truly next level. Sofia is such an interesting character IMO, and I love that we got to see more layers and overall depth to her character.

You could tell she genuinely loved and cared for her brother and vice versa but man when it comes to Carmine its such an entirely different dynamic and it really made me sympathize for her.

I thought Turturro was great as Carmine in The Batman but even with what little we got here I also thought Mark Strong left an equally strong impression and made him feel even more sinister.

The Arkham stuff was brutal asf too.
 
Well, I'll say right off the bat, had this series ended with Episode 4, it's already given us one of the best Batman related tv, or film, productions ever.

I'll also say something which may be blasphemy to alot of fans of the comics : I prefer Milioti's characterization, and interpretation, of Sofia Falcone to the iconic The Long Halloween, and Dark Victory ,versions.

Which ever actress inevitably plays the role in a future adaptation of the Batman story, is gonna have big shoes to fill, because Milioti has set the bar sky high for performances.

I also like that they gave us more dimensions to Alberto , who in the pilot , just seemed like a punk , but the character has layers to him.

Farrell as always continues , by my money, to be the best version of The Penguin character on film and tv.
He's Oz , a character , like Sofia, with subtly, nuances, and emotions which go beyond the over the top acting we've seen in the decades worth of some Batman films and related tv shows .

I also liked that they adapted Summer Gleason from BTAS .

As I said last week, I'm glad Reeves is getting to tell his own story of the Batman myths , in his own way, with his own vision, without a shared DC Universe.
 
Last edited:
You know what? Thinking about it now....

This just makes it all the more sad about Martha, too.

It's now even more understandable why Thomas went absolutely desperate for Martha, fearing she would mentally break as her past was in the verge of going public, with press, sensationalism and all.

Damn... way more relatable.
 
Pretty good episode overall, granted not the strongest of the series thus far. Millioti continues to carry like crazy with her performance. She's fantastic, and looks stunning every second of it.

I really like Strong as an actor, but I do feel he was miscast here. He just as too, for lack of a better word, strong of a presence for the character. It comes off as traditional mob boss vs. that slime Uncle you get from Turturro.
 
Miloti is dynamite. This show is blessed to have three lead actors so compelling to watch. I generally liked the episode, but did think it felt a bit weaker. Strong wasn't super compelling to watch here. He's good, but he feels lacking next to Turturro. Lacks that affable little freak vibe that made Carmine stand out in the movie. I also was having some hesitations with the Arkham patients feeling kinda... Sketchy in presentation. Potentially running into issues that a lot of portrayals of institutions like that end up falling into. However as the episode went on, I got the vibe that the patients weren't like that from their own doing but because the staff is specifically manipulating, experimenting, and otherwise "encouraging" them so I think there's more wiggle room there than I had initially anticipated. Generally though felt like the Arkham material felt a little less confident than the crime stuff, but Miloti's performance helps carry it through.
 
Repost and updates from the other thread:

...the filmmaking and editing of the Arkham stint did leave a bit to be desired.

It was meant to be this claustrophobic concussion of memories flooding to Sofia, but the truncated montage edit of it made it lose some impact imo. It was fine, but maybe some of the weaker stuff from the show so far. This episode was at it's best before and after those moments. Especially the opening and ending. I thought Strong served the role well. Nothing crazy, but didn't take away from anything either. Milioti was outstanding again though. The show overall has had some problems with allowing things to breathe at times imo, but it's few and far between.

And the other two inmates they focused on were effective enough, but were very on the nose in their performance and purpose. The shorter haired one was particularly sad though, both being clear guinea pigs.
 
Just finished and Sofia just keeps pushing further up the ranks of DC characters brought to life on screen. I don’t think there are many fans who could have asked for much more from the portrayal of this role. It’s been a revelation and I hope the reception she gets means we get this version of the character hanging around a good while, be it in other films/shows/seasons of this show.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top
monitoring_string = "afb8e5d7348ab9e99f73cba908f10802"