One of the best shows on television returns this weekend, when Steven Soderbergh‘s "The Knick" kicks off season two on Cinemax. And if you’re not watching, I don’t really know what to say, except that it’s your loss. Featuring the role of a lifetime for Clive Owen (who gives the performance of a lifetime to match), and breathlessly directed by Soderbergh who seems to have the energy of filmmaker decades younger, it’s gripping viewing. And it’s made even more remarkable given how quickly the director is able to knock these out.
A great piece over at Vulture details Soderbergh’s process, which finds him embracing digital technology at all levels of production, which allows him to shoot up to nine pages of script per day — an almost inhuman feat. Now add that each evening, he’s already cutting the day’s material, and you have a show that is being made at a rate that blazes by anybody else in the medium. Moreover, this is all while Soderbergh is coming up with one tremendous shot after another, with more to come in season two.
READ MORE: Interview: Clive Owen Talks Making ‘The Knick’
One scene in particular will be a two-minute tracking shot, lit "Barry Lyndon" style, just a single candle. "[Cornelia Robertson moves] through a house with a candle and we follow her, and that’s it. Just one candle, and you can see everything!” the director exclaimed. And his love for the new tools of the trade are effusive.
“If I had this shit at the beginning of my career, the movies would’ve been a lot better,” he said bluntly.
"The Knick" is back on Friday at 10 PM. Check out two new trailers below along with a clip and character posters. [Note: the international trailer embed is a bit wonky, so you’ll have to make it full screen by clicking the box in the bottom right].
