When it comes to bringing to life a character who is a thirty-something Russian aristocrat born in the 1800s, Ewan McGregor might not be the first actor who springs to mind. He might not even be the second, or third, or twentieth. But as McGregor’s memorable performance in A Gentleman in Moscow proves, he is in fact the perfect man for the job.
McGregor takes on the role of the fictional Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov in this eight-part limited series, which opens in 1921 with the former aristocrat, who has no place in post-revolutionary Russia, being sentenced to a lifetime of house arrest by the Bolsheviks.
Unfortunately for Alexander, they’ve burned down his extravagant ancestral estate, so his house arrest must take place in what he thought would be his temporary residence — the (still extravagant, but slightly less so) Hotel Metropol Moscow. He even has to vacate the fancy suite he’s been staying in for a small, dingy attic room that was formerly servants’ quarters. However, he has the run of the hotel otherwise — including its fine-dining facilities, which, even in the midst of famine, maintain a steady supply of food so the Soviet regime can keep up appearances for foreign visitors.
If Ewan McGregor as a Russian noble may not seem to be the most natural match, then the idea that a modern audience would easily and readily sympathise with a rich, privileged protagonist who happens to become slightly less rich and privileged is perhaps even less obvious. Add in the fact that we spend most of the series almost entirely absorbed in the Count’s character, stuck in one location, and it might seem like a hard sell.
It speaks to the strength of McGregor’s performance that this turns out not to be the case. A Gentleman in Moscow is compelling, amusing, and, at times, very moving. And while the sets, costumes, dialogue, and supporting cast all offer solid contributions, it’s McGregor’s performance that the series really hinges on — and succeeds by.
Alexander is a character who refuses to let his problems get the better of him — “master your circumstances or be mastered by them” is his motto. He doesn’t just put on a brave face, he presents a downright delighted one, moving through the world (or, rather, the confines of the hotel) with a glint in his eye and a twitch in his magnificent moustache. McGregor brings just the right amount of wit and whimsy to it all, and you can’t help but be charmed right along with the staff and guests of the Metropol (with one or two notable exceptions).
Crucially, McGregor expertly holds the line that prevents the character, and the series on the whole, from slipping into full twee territory. His strongest moments are often his quietest ones, when the Count doesn’t let his chirpy facade slip so much as shimmer slightly. His true, sometimes very dark, feelings flicker out in McGregor’s micro-expressions, which are all the more powerful for their smallness. Such subtlety also means that the few instances when the Count can express the full depth of his feelings — his despair, and fear, and rage — pack even more of a gut punch.
McGregor draws out a deceptively easy chemistry with his scene partners, from the ensemble cast who populate the Metropol staff, to his on-again off-again romantic dalliance with actress Anna Urbanova, played by McGregor’s real-life wife Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and especially with his Javert-esque Soviet warden Osip Glebnikov, gruffly embodied by English actor Johnny Harris.
But where McGregor, and the show, shines brightest is in the surprising connections Alexander makes with two young girls. The first is Nina Kulikova, played by Alexa Goodall and, after a time jump, Leah Balmforth, who lives at the hotel and offers her extensive knowledge of every room and passageway (and a key to unlock them all) to Alexander in exchange for his stories of now-defunct princesses and elaborate parties, and the occasional shared meal.
Alexander is later introduced to another girl, Sofia (played at different ages by sisters Billie and Beau Gadsdon), who is quieter and less light than Nina, but intriguing and special in her own way. Alexander becomes a sort of surrogate father to her, and McGregor’s performance expertly sees him navigate the journey from a befuddled babysitter trying his best to an utterly devoted parent willing to take on anything and anyone for his child. If Alexander and Nina’s dynamic forms the heart of the show early on, Alexander and Sofia’s connection fills that heart to bursting and breaks it right open.
In A Gentleman in Moscow, the setting of Soviet Russia, and the Hotel Metropol, are merely a backdrop for what is ultimately an intimate tale of found family, parenthood, and the importance of human connection — told with a little twinkle and a lot of care in the performance of Ewan McGregor.
A Gentleman In Moscow is now streaming at SBS On Demand.
