I tried lo like the series, because a dear friend of me recommended it. But The Alienist is barely watchable. The cinematography bothers me sometimes with shots and scenes completely devoid of purpose. The producers think we are so stupid that we won't be aware that a villain is nearby the protagonist and therefore they show us that villain repeatedly more time that the necessary.
Also, they overuse the close-up shots. They use it a lot like saying to us: "Hey, look at the face of this character. Look at his facial expressions, otherwise you will miss the tension of the scene". The acting is not very good either and some characters simply don't convince me. I'm not convinced by any of the protagonist, specially Sara (cold and flat) and the doctor (forced). None of the characters are compelling. The main characters, supposedly brilliant minds, get offended by the smallest insults. I don't relate to any of them. The characters seem like they are orating, yet there is nothing even dramatic to their oration.
Also, why bother in not showing us the face of the killer if he's going to be killed in the last episode and we won't know any of the answers to the questions everyone had? That's just lame writing. An atmosphere of mystery was created for nothing and that's just disrespectful with the audience. The dialogs are plain and boring. At times, the analysis of the possible killer is terrible monotone and repetitive and also the show has a compulsive need to showing us the passage of time, reminding us at every chance they got that the deadline is approaching.
I'm still waiting for something mysterious are intriguing to capture my imagination or attention. We already have Sherlock Holmes and this is a poor attempt to match it. Although the character of Laszlo is more realistic that Sherlock, I give you that.
The ending of the season is lazy and seems rushed. What about the forced romance with Mary? They just added it to kill the character later so we give a damn about her.
I DO NOT recommend The Alienist to people who enjoy a well devised mystery or have a background in psychology or history. A movie would be great, but as a TV series, I'm very disappointed.
Personal Rating And Critics
Recommend: 5 out of 10
Plot: 5 out of 10
Cinematography: 5 of 10
Photography: 9 of 10
Lead Performers: 5 out of 10
Supporting Cast: 6 out of 10
Direction: 6 out of 10
Screen Play: 5 out of 10
Music Score: 7 out of 10
Title Sequence: 9 out of 10
