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Movie Review by The Gravedigger
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06.06.08
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This short-lived television series (8 episodes) is about a four- hundred year old man named John Amsterdam (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) searching four his "soul-mate". This "curse" or "gift" was put upon him by a Native American woman. He can't die until he finds the one he's supposed to be with and we see through flashbacks that he's tried to find her, given all the past marriages and offspring he has scattered throughout New York City.
In the first episode he suddenly has a heart attack while on a subway platform and starts to think that the special woman was on the train. He finds out that the doctor, Sara Dillane (Alexie Gilmore) who treats him in the hospital is the same one who helps him on the subway platform and he pursues a relationship with her. It's a rocky relationship as she's separated from her husband and he even tells her the truth about his age, though she doesn't believe him.
What's most interesting are the flashback stories, such as the origin of Omar, his 65 year old African-American son, and also a branch of his lineage that turned into mobsters during the past century. The time lapse sequences are also cool, which show how New York has grown over the centuries. In fact, in one such sequence we find out that the exact place where he was shot and came back from the dead, immortal, is Times Square!
There's also a good chemistry between him and his new police partner, Eva Marquez (Zuleikha Robinson of LONE GUNMEN), though the series didn't have enough time to explore their relationship. I was beginning to think that she may be the woman he is looking for...
Amsterdam isn't the most likable character and in the flashbacks is more of an asshole than anything else. The primary reason he is a detective is that it's interesting. He also goes to AA meetings and has been 60 years sober.
At least there's an ending to the current story line in the eighth and last episode, which has him realizing that Dr. Sara may not be his lost love and he breaks off the relationship with her. The last shot is a high angle long shot of him walking away from the camera, alone.
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Rating: 7.0 out of 10.0 - 3 votes cast total
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