Kings an antidote to Spring ennui?

Are all the best movies of Spring premiering on TV? As Sasha noted a few days ago, one of the most anticipated films of the season is Grey Gardens on HBO. And while the top five movies at the box-office score 52, 56, 41, 50 & 50 on Metacritic*, the most cinematically satisfying experience this weekend might very well be seen on NBC. The last time I remember the word “cinematic” seriously invoked for the small screen was when Mad Men premiered, and that’s worked out pleasurably. Salon’s Heather Havrilesky gets our hopes up again:

NBCs “Kings is a rare and beautiful thing — cinematic, poetic, ambitious television on prime time network TV… the gorgeous art direction and stunning cinematography of “Kings” draw us in… The creative imagery used to signify the divine — butterflies or flocks of pigeons or black clouds dramatically parting to reveal a ray of sunshine — are so beautifully shot that they conjure the ethereal…. There’s a perfectionist in the mix here, either director Francis Lawrence (“I Am Legend”) or creator Green or both. Someone had exacting standards and such a clear idea of how they wanted this drama to look that the results are just incomparable, in terms of modern TV shows. See for yourself: There’s not a single lazy shot or half-assed image on the screen, from start to finish, and the results fall somewhere between a moody art film, a big-budget superhero blockbuster and the more breathtaking scenes from “Lord of the Rings.”

I’m in. Can Kings really be this good? On the east coast we’ll find out in a couple of hours (8 PM EST). Other reviews have not been quite so ecstatic, but nearly everyone agrees “Kings isn‚Äôt much like anything else on TV,” and critics are unanimously praise Ian McShane as the King himself:

As well-written as his dialogue may be, King Silas could’ve ended up a far less compelling character in anyone else’s hands. But McShane brings such a palpable mix of swagger and sweetness to King Silas that his character rivals the most complicated, touching yet terrifying patriarchs to inhabit any screen, small or large.

Think of Robert Duvall as “The Great Santini” or Jack Nicholson in “Heartburn” (or even “The Shining”). McShane is just as convincing when Silas is kissing his children and calling them “puppy” as he is when Silas is threatening his foes, with his wild eyes and that predatorial set to his teeth. McShane savors each line or spits it out with brute force, but either way, he absolutely owns the script. He moves like a shark or a teddy bear, depending on his mood. Even those viewers who find the notion of aristocracy disturbing will accept this man as a king.

Sounds almost good enough to make me stop mourning the premature death of Deadwood. Maureen Ryan at the Chicago Tribune reminds us that if the Kings “occasionally comes off as an earnest, CliffsNotes mash-up of Shakespeare‚Äôs history plays, the Old Testament and Gossip Girl ‚Äîwell, at least it‚Äôs not another cop drama.” (and, hey, that pitch doesn’t sound half-bad to me.)

Michael Green is the creator of Heroes, and Kings appears to mine the same vein of alternate reality that feels dramatically relevant as we all try to find workable new realities in real life. It remains to be seen if Green can hit the mark he’s aiming for with another high-concept mythology, but when our theatrical alternatives are Paul Blart: Mall Cop and Madea Goes to Jail it’s wise to remember this: In the vapid country of the blind, one-idea-ed men are Kings.