Marketic It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

Jacomedi A Surprisingly Unforgettable Movie!

Taraparain Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

Alasdair Orr Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

funkycamper I had already seen the Canal+ Borgia, which was mesmerizing and excellent. I expected the story and interpretation of the Borgia family's activities to be different but at the same level of story- telling. What a disappointment. Jeremy Irons, who is usually riveting, seemed to be sleep-walking through most episodes. And he played Pope Alexander/Rodrigo as if he was a half-addled fool who just kinda fell into the position of Pope. Of course, he may have been as bored with the insipid script as I was. I don't know what to think of Holliday Grainger's portrayal of Lucrezia. While I realize women had limited spheres in which to influence in their lives, I found it insulting that a powerful woman, famous through the centuries, would just be a cheap soap opera, bodice-ripping tart. I actually fast-forwarded through some of the scenes she was in because she was written and played like a grown woman throwing tantrums and hissy fits. I just couldn't stand watching her. Pretty, yes. The only other thing I have seen her in was a Bonnie & Clyde show. I was not impressed with her performance in that either. This part was too important to be played by someone with limited acting skils.Cesare, as acted by Francois Arnaud, fared the best of the leads. While it was hard to see the gravitas that might have made others follow him into battle, I think the actor could have displayed that and blame the writing instead.While I have focused on the poor acting, I think the problem was really in the writing and direction. We all know Irons is capable of putting on stellar performances. Maybe Grainger is, too. But, as written and directed, everything was flat and, quite frankly, quite boring.I know I sound like a masochist when I say I watched all three seasons of something I hated. It did have its moments and the sets and costumes were sublime. Curiosity kept me going.This is actually the first review I've written so I apologize for it not being well-crafted. I just felt so disappointed and angry that a great opportunity was squandered, that I couldn't keep quiet.If you want a fascinating story with characters that seem like real people, watch Borgia instead.

Jadedrose This show does take many leisures with the actual events of the Borgia family and makes up a great deal for this series. I honestly didn't have too many complaints with this series, since most shows based off of history seem to exaggerate or change actual events, the thing that bothered me a great deal, that it ruined me ever enjoying this series was the lack of a sense of time. Or maybe it didn't lack a sense of time, just was very little attention paid to detail. It seemed like a great deal of time went pass during the whole series but I couldn't really tell or believe that it had because the Borgia baby NEVER grew/aged at all. During the time frame of all three seasons the child could have aged at least a few years but it never did. This left me to believe that all these events happened in less than a year and a half, if that. Or just threw me off the time frame altogether. That ignored detail took away a great deal for me.

napchier Incomplete, though I thoroughly enjoyed the series. A little artistic license should be expected, concerning certain deaths, the time line, and so on, but as a depiction of the events at hand it really does do a splendid job! Season 3 ended satisfactorily, however I feel robbed upon discovering that Season 3 is where it ALL ends. Sadly the production company felt it would be too expensive to finalise the story arc, with it's originally intended 4th and final season. It was meant to dramatise Pope Alexander VI's entire papacy, from 1492 until 1503. The series reached 1500AD, cutting us off from 3 short years, including war between France and Spain (probably where production concerns for the series were mounted), and the death of Rodrigo Borgia (Pope A VI) in 1503. They wouldn't even do a short movie to wrap up. So, what ever happens, if you start this, you'll never, ever finish it. You may just have to pick the rest up in a book.

petarmatic I waited for such a series about Borgias for a long time and I finally found one! And what a series it is! Jeremy Irons is fantastic, albeit he is not so fat as the real pope Alexander. The rest of the cast is superb as well, so are the sets and costumes! What a story is that Pope, and his son Cesare and his daughter Lucrezia! Sex, poison, war, incest, fight for power all in one place. Truly a revolutionary Pope, he ushered a new era, the Renesaince. He changed humanity for good and probably started protestant movement in Europe at that time. The New World was discovered, he delimited Spanish and Portugese sphere of influence there. And while he was at it Cesare feasted in cutting people throats to protect him and the Family(yes people think it was the beginning of Mafia). Cesare was so cruel that everyone in Rome thought it unacceptable. Pope and Cesare died the same night. Were they poisoned? Probably! Curia could not have any more of that behavior, people all over Catholic world were asking questions, Martin Luther was looking everything with his eyes wide shut! I hope I will live to see another Pope like him again! Not like this Francis, he just talks about peace, give me some crusades, war, dear Francis! Well at least you said homosexuality is good! That is a start, soon you will have gay orgies in Vatican, eh? Who knows, may be you will soon OK pedophilia too. That would be a start. Your own Cesare and Lurezia could be in the offing... Pity we do not have a chance to see the end of all of this, since HBO canceled the series. I could of feasted my eyes a little bit more on those fantastic actors, sets and costumes. How about a closure, HBO, ha? They deserve it!