Awards like Emmys and Golden Globes are mostly meaningless, and ultimately have little to nothing to do with how a TV series is regarded or remembered. Nevertheless, it’s a damn shame that Maggie Gyllenhaal will likely end her run on The Deuce with little to no industry recognition for the work she’s been doing here. Thus far, she’s received one Globe nomination for The Deuce—for season one—and that’s it. One. And for this week’s episode alone, she shouldn’t just win a trophy, she should have one named after her.
I wouldn’t go so far as to say that Gyllenhaal in the latest episode justifies the entire existence of The Deuce, since there’s always been plenty else to recommend about this show. But the monologue she delivers as Eileen this week—about how the character’s perpetually disappointed, conservative Catholic dad took her to get an illegal abortion when she was a teenager, and how she tried to convince herself that this meant he actually cared about her—is a miraculous bit of acting, building slowly from quietly observational storytelling to a painful eruption of emotion. When Eileen remembers her father disappearing during the procedure, and how she realized, “He needs the lie more than he could ever need you,” the ache in her voice transforms the energy of the scene.
And that’s just one of multiple Gyllenhaal highlights in this episode, which Is titled “This Trust Thing.” Eileen tells the story about her abortion to an actress she’s hired for a movie she’s making about what it’s really like to be a woman in America in 1985. She started out wanting to make a film about sex workers; but while interviewing a potential cinematographer at a diner, she finds herself captivated by a waitress who lets her male clientele behave like absolute pigs, because she has to hustle for tips. Eileen decides that focusing on prostitutes and pornographers would let her audience off the hook, because it would just give then “something to gawk at.” Instead she wants everyone to understand something that unites women: “What we trade, what we give away… Every woman in this world is sellin’.”
In another powerhouse monologue, Eileen persuades Harvey to cover half her budget, to make up for the myriad ways his work has made women’s lives worse. “This is your world,” she says. “You guys made this motherfucker. … What men want—no, what they’ll pay for—that becomes the world.”
Just ask Lori. Once she got free of C.C. last season, she conceded control of her life and career to her agent Kiki (whose name even rhymes with C.C.), and to her producer boyfriend Greg. But neither of them have been able to live up to their promises. She’s given most of her earnings to Greg for him to launch his production company, with her, in theory, as his profit-participating star. But he claims he can’t make a go of it because the porn market’s already oversaturated. Kiki. meanwhile, only seems interested in selling her client on the cheap, rather than fighting for Lori’s true earning potential.
When Lori shows up at a shoot and sees a dozen dudes and no other ladies, she knows it’s time to fire her manager. She decides to dump her boyfriend, too, after finding him having sex with another woman in their bedroom, while Bryan Adams’ “Summer of ’69” plays. These are not the best days of her life.
Melissa knows what Eileen’s talking about, too. As was made clear by the opening scenes of “They Can Never Go Home,” two episodes ago, Melissa’s father was never going to be able to welcome her back with open arms and a forgiving heart. “He needs the answers,” she sighs to her friend Reg, while speculating that even though her dad gave up booze, he still has all the guilt and anger issues of a raging alcoholic. “Dry drunks,” Reg nods, calling out this particular type of guy. These too are the men who make the world.
About half of “This Trust Thing” is about the machinations of these men, some of whom have struggles of their own. Gene Goldman and Detective Chris Alston are doing okay, continuing to work together to transfer control of Times Square away from the smut-peddlers to the real estate tycoons. They run into a snag this week, when one of the landlords they’re trying to oust turns out to be a consortium that has donated big money to Ed Koch. As a solution, Goldman somewhat questionably uses Alston as his “bad cop,” painting him as the untouchable black lieutenant who might stir up trouble in the newspapers if he doesn’t get his way. And so the recalcitrant slumlords finally back off—and get paid. It’s no wonder that Chris later gets an earful of beef from his old colleague on vice, who complains cleaning up the Deuce means that no dishonest cop can make a dollar.
As always, Gene makes these moves knowing that eventually he may end up putting his favorite gay hookup spots out of business. Paul, for one, is already planning to liquidate his stake in all of his bars and bathhouses, and—after a conversation with a friend who may be Larry Kramer?—to donate the proceeds to the Gay Men’s Health Crisis. Paul hates the kind of pay-to-play politics that “closeted pricks” like Koch and Goldman represent. (“Why should I have to pay for people to do jobs they already get paid for?”) But as his unnamed friend—who, again, is probably Larry Kramer—says, if gay men are doomed to extinction in New York City, they may as well “die screaming.”
Speaking of a culture dying off, let’s say a fond farewell to Rudy Pipilo, who makes one last futile effort to preserve order in the Deuce, after Vincent kills the man who killed Frankie. Everything about Rudy is old school—including the mellow ‘50s pop playing at his favorite mafia bar—and so he presumes he’ll be respected when he tries to straighten out Tommy Longo for brokering coke deals and for allowing two “earners” like the Martino brothers to get targeted. Even Rudy’s fate is classic: Tommy shoots him dead, in a car parked down a dark Manhattan street.
On second thought though, maybe we shouldn’t feel too much sympathy for Rudy, who spent most of his life profiting off the work of women who were either discarded or scarred after their time on the streets, in the parlors, in the peep show booths, and on porn sets. When Bobby this week gets annoyed that he can’t fill Rudy’s envelope because the parlor prostitutes are looking for better opportunities, Bobby grumbles in his good ol’ boy “things were better in my day” way about how when he worked a union job, he had a better work ethic than these hookers. When Black Frankie replies that Bobby’s ladies also, “Kind of unionized, didn’t they?,” the boss doesn’t know how to respond. Would these men who made the world have been so adamant about their codes and ethics and rules, if they’d known they could apply to women too?
Stray observations
- Two nice touches in the opening diner scene: The waitress who’s getting sexually harassed left and right has an accent and cadence that sounds just like Eileen’s; and during the establishing shot, a burned-out “N” in the outdoor sign makes it look like the restaurant in question is a “DIER.” (I hope that’s not foreshadowing for Eileen’s story.)
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See, I thought who you thought was Larry Kramer was perhaps a composite of a Broadway composer of that era— John Kander or Sondheim— or even a music director/accompanist who played the supper club— a Wally Harper-type. Since the scene took place around a piano and the mystery friend was tickling the ivories, that’s what popped into my head. Of course, the rhetoric is full Larry Kramer. This last season is just emotionally draining, but beautifully done.
Harvey Fierstein in a contemplative moment?I think Larry Kramer is the guy with the megaphone at the rally- looked like him.
The guy with the megaphone at the rally clearly had KS lesions on his body, so I doubt it could have been Larry Kramer. (Larry Kramer was later diagnosed with HIV but managed to avoid progressing to AIDS).
That seemed much more like Kramer to me. Larry Kramer has such a distinctive look and mannerisms that I don’t for one second think we were meant to think that Paul’s friend is playing Larry (also, by 1985 Larry would have already been much more hard hitting in what he said to Paul).
Is he meant to be a theatre composer? Certainly Sondheim was still not publicly out in the mid 80s and wouldn’t be going to rallies (I doubt Kander would either, though he was always less private about it).
Upon re-watching, I see that that same piano fellow was at the front line in the rally, so yes… Larry Kramer. None of them— Sondheim, Kander and Ebb, Jerry Herman (who luckily survived those plague years, despite an HIV diagnosis) even Arthur Laurents— were ever out to the general public until probably the late 90s. I don’t even think Fred Ebb ever was. It’s a generational thing. Now Sondheim goes to swanky Buttigieg fundraisers. Good for him!
I’m still not sold on “piano guy” being a Kramer substitute. It seems like he would be shown quite differently, if he was meant to be. (I did look up what the name of Carl Capotorto’s character is named, and according to imdb, he doesn’t have a name. But I do appreciate that Capotorto played the role—I know he was hired to the writing staff partly because of his own experience as a gay guy during that era, who was also involved with some of the mob action—and he wrote one of this season’s best episodes).
As a Sondheim fanatic, I understand why he wasn’t publicly out for so long (it also seems like he didn’t really accept being gay for a big chunk of his life). Laurents was pretty much out for the last few decades of his life, wasn’t he? I thought that was one reason (among many) for why he was so bitter towards the people he worked with. Sondheim did write incidental music for Laurents’ interesting/weird early 1970s play The Enclave which deals with straight friends trying to live in a commune type situation with a gay couple.
– Just knew someone at the end was going to pull a gun. I was hoping for Rudy.- Next week doesn’t look like its going to get better for Lori.
Yeah I was rooting for Rudy, but figured Tommy was probably the cold killer of the two. Rudy definitely part of the old wave of organized crime, that was largely rubbed out or cowed into submission when Gotti killed Castellano and took over the Gambinos, and initiated a new, bloody era in New York crime.
It seemed awfully naive on Rudy’s part not understanding that Tommy had to go you can’t have a guy that disloyal under you after you tell the boss “over my dead body”.
Yeah I knew Rudy was probably doomed when he told his superior that he gave the go ahead to kill the made guy’s son (sorry characters names escape me). I don’t know much about organized crime, but I have heard that if you wanna touch a Made Guy you have have to get approval, and I would think that would go for a Made Guy’s son. When Rudy took responsibility, I think he was being a bit naive, not realizing the new violence about to take over the Gambino crew.
Yeah I knew Rudy was probably doomed when he told his superior that he
gave the go ahead to kill the made guy’s son (sorry characters names
escape me).
No, Rudy was doomed when he confronted Tommy in the bar & let him get away with it. No reason for Tommy to defer to Rudy after that.
Possibly but I don’t think Tommy would’ve had the wherewithal to kill Rudy unless he got some kind of go ahead (I don’t know if it’s been said if Rudy was a made man or not). Don’t get me wrong, they were definitely setting Tommy up as a potential traitor, but I think the clincher was when Rudy went to bat for his guy against the will of the Family. Tommy just made the most sense as the hitman because he’s close to Rudy.
I get what you’re saying, but I don’t think Tommy is that smart. I think he saw an opportunity to make a move & took it.
Oh yes you and I agree, he’s not a smart enough guy to make his own moves, which for me is why I suspected he was ordered by someone else to do it. I just don’t think he would’ve done it on his own. Not to mention, if it wasn’t sanctioned, he’d face reprisal.
Not to mention, if it wasn’t sanctioned, he’d face reprisal. I don’t think it was sanctioned. I can’t really say why, but I don’t. I think he saw an opportunity to look good to the bosses & took it. Asking forgiveness instead of permission worked when Rudy found out about the coke, so maybe he thought he could make a move & take Rudy’s place & the bosses wouldn’t mind.
That’s a good point. I’ll be fascinated to see how this starts to play out in the coming episodes.
Welp, I guess Tommy’s a Gambino now.
Aren’t they all part of the Gambino family? I thought both Rudy and Gotti were capos at this point in 1985 (I mean, Rudy is fictional, but that seems like the level he is operating at and would be part of the Castellano side of the family and Gotti being under Dellacroce) and Tommy was part of Rudy’s crew.
Whoops. that should’ve read “Gotti,” as in Tommy has sided with Gotti. My bad.
Noel,So glad to see this “A”. While watching, and yes most especially Gyllenhaal nail that scene trying to motivate the actress, it is also the painful dramatization of those infected with HIV and succumbing to AIDS. What could be rote is being handled so accurately. It was such a horrible time to witness and seeing the roots of ACT-UP (the then cry“to do something”) is a painful an important representation of history that I can scarce believe is now three generations past. The “who will remember us” are conversations most of us of a certain age remember having one too many times. This episode really raised the bar for THE DEUCE. Outstanding.
Paul, please, go get tested.Kiki (whose name even rhymes with C.C.) [astonished-pikachu.jpg]
I know, right? Everytime he says, ‘I just assume I have it’, I’m like, “Dude”.ps- I can’t believe that I never noticed the CC/Kiki thing either. It’s so ridiculously obvious now.
I don’t know does it really make any difference at this point? It’s not like he’s going to pass it on to someone else he’s a responsible guy and he’s still in mourning anyway. All knowing does is confirm your life is ending there wasn’t any treatment in 85 that actually accomplished anything.
It’s just frustrating to have the “responsible” guy who is imploring others in his community to be careful be ignorant – willfully ignorant – of his own status.
Of course, a well-meaning person avoiding taking their own advice is a more realistic characterization of a person staring down a literal life-or-death issue. So, in that way, it works very well.
Yeah, I find it completely realistic that he has a fatalistic take that he probably has it so why bother getting tested, while still being very careful and championing safe sex. And speaking from personal experience, I can understand the mindset he’s in since when I was younger (and yes, stupid) I spent a good year in exactly that same place—and this was around 2000 when there was good treatment especially if detected earlier (I was negative but still remember how miserable the time waiting for my results was).
The wait was the worst, wasn’t it? Jesus… I can’t think of any time in my life when I’ve been as anxious as I was during those days between the test and the results. I hear the new test has nearly-instant results, or at least same-day.
Yeah I think my wait time was only a couple of days – I do remember calling I’m and the nurse reading my results for every STI known to humanity which seemed for ever and saving my HIV status for last. And yeah now they can give you virtually instant results from a finger prick.
I mean, that’s true, but he just seems not to have any symptoms, so there’s still a chance that he doesn’t have it, but his assuming that he already does probably makes the likelihood higher that he could contract it now. That’s true about mourning, though. I dunno. TV is a visual medium, so I generally assume that if they don’t show us symptoms of something, then it’s not happening. Could go either way, though.
After watching his boyfriend die a horrible death, he is probably even more strict about condom use for fear of passing the virus he thinks he as on to someone else.
mmmmmm just gonna leave this here.
I believe (based on the Band Played on, The Normal Heart, The Great Believers) there was a large portion of the gay community that was very suspicious of the test, which I think became available in ‘85. There was a feeling that having the test performed might get your name on some kind of list the gov’t was keeping. Additionally there was no really effective treatment for AIDS until 1996 (I think).Not a defense, just a little context.
No mention of Mike?
I felt like I missed a scene had they previously shown him testing positive? I know he was in a relationship with a trans woman last season but that seemed to come out of left field. It pretty much leaves Vincent by himself. I’m sure Tommy is going to be the one who gets the contract.
Yeah, he was at the doctor who mentioned that his pneumonia was “the end of the beginning,” which I took to mean the beginning of early HIV.
Well, yeah, right before that, he’d said that Mike’s condition was common in patients with the virus.
Thank you. Damn. I like Candy/Eileen and Abby, but after that it’s Big Mike. I honestly have zero empathy for Lori and have never understood the attraction to her character.
i know. i was just about to say that. Big Mike’s scenes were so good, especially his final one, though i hope that wasn’t his last.
Also interesting that Harvey finally kissed Eileen, and she let it play out for a minute. Paul’s story too, I feel, is strong enough that it could spin off into its own show.
I know I’m supposed to care about this but the moment Goldman and Alston appear on-screen I suddenly feel like I’ve just swallowed a handful of sleeping pills.
Wow, really? Their schemes have been one of the highlights (and one of the very few moments of levity) for me this season.
I feel like Alston is in trouble here. He’s making some kind of deal with Ralph Maccio to do something shady to put more pressure on the landlords. I’m guessing someone is going to do some digging on Goldman’s secret life and Alston will be left holding the bag.
I don’t mind Goldman, because he at least has a little edge, but Alston is a bore, and it’s mostly because the guy playing him is a lousy actor with zero charisma who’s been coasting off the goodwill earned from his work from The Wire for years.
I’m gonna miss Rudy. Dude was a stand up guy and pretty fair as far as mobsters go. He didn’t care if you were gay, black, or a disrespectful idiot(Frankie). As long as you earned, he had your back and didn’t even make a fuss when things were light.
He’s the best 🙁 And we’re losing based Mike in the same episode too… fug…
Give Maggie G all the awards. What an absolutely devastating monologue..
That monologue just about did me in; I was tearing up about a third of the way through it. I am beyond invested in this show and its characters. Dorothy/Ashley’s murder made me furious, because I so wanted things to finish well for her. I’ve never been wrapped up in a show’s characters as much as I am these.
Stop me if you’ve heard this one: David Simon creates a great show that almost everyone ignores.
Hes one of the best and yet nobody watches his stuff wtf. It’s not him it’s the public
That’s because Simon creates shows that leaves you with a visceral feeling long after you have watched it. Today’s shows that seem to succeed must be dumb down to the point where it feels like the producers are actively insulting their own audiences along with a tired the monkey must laugh now laugh track or give them bland paint by numbers drama that you know the outcome of which before the opening credits finishes.
Yes …
Maggie was on a talk show a few weeks back where they kinda addressed this fact. She said that she suspects when all three seasons are over and can be watched as one piece, it will find more of an audience. I suspect she might be right (isn’t that what happened with The Wire? At least among my friends, very few watched while it aired, at least the early seasons).
Eh, kinda? It happened mainly with seasons 1-3 (when I was watching and yelling at people online), but Season 4 and 5 had most entertainment websites on the planet screaming about its greatness and the vast, vast majority of people didn’t give a shit and the audience continued to shrink. Even now, most don’t know or care, unfortunately.
I guess it’s all relative. It seems like the friends of mine who discuss TV shows have all watched The Wire (only a couple are watching The Deuce, however…) But most did come to it very late (as did I).
Most people I know aggressively loved/rewatch The Wire all the time and haven’t even tried this one yet (mostly due to the James Franco factor). It’s a shame. But I do think the binge option would help.
Though I know about all the mess James Franco is involved in, I didn’t even think of that factoring in—but it makes a lot of sense. I just thought people might be more willing to watch a show about the world of drugs (and crime) than one that was solved at first so much about being about porn. Even though I would probably be more likely to watch the latter 😛
Yeah, I do think there were more characters in The Wire that made people feel cool to watch. Quotable folks. “Badasses,” or whatever it is that gets people excited.I also think The Wire had a faster hook due to the direct connections between all of the worlds portrayed (worlds that were specifically working against each other).
they woke
I noticed the DIE-R right away. I took it to foreshadow Rudy’s death, and I ended up being correct. This show has done signage foreshadowing before. Also, Rudy’s death was basically written on the wall already, because we know that these old-school mafia guys are ultimately going to be replaced by the Gambinos. So it seemed almost necessary for Rudy to be taken out.
“It’s about a woman (…) She can be a waitress, she can be a secretary, whatever the fuck.” -Maggie Gyllenhaal
“I’ve been a union man all my life.” -Chris Bauer
It’s pretty funny how oblivious he is he thinks he’s just the employee with the most seniority not management.
Frank Sobotka would’ve sided with the women, in addition to feeling really bad if they all ended up dead in a shipping canister ON HIS DOCKS.
Instead, he’s shipping out women! Dramatic irony!
I lost myself in two solids minutes of laughter at FRANK SOBOTKA of all people getting turned around by the girls essentially unionizing. Best belly laugh of the night and possibly the season.
No mention of Big Mike and his death sentence? I didn’t understand what that was about, but since he is one of the few characters I care about on this show, it would have been nice to give him a mention.
What is up with Harvey’s yoyo-ing weight on this series? Is that a conscious decision on David Krumholtz’s part?
Kind of a one way yo yo, right? Like he hasn’t really gone back up, has he? I assume it’s Krumholtz getting healthier in real life.
He seems heavier this season than last, but not as heavy as in Season 1.
I mean five years or so back he had thyroid cancer–surely that’s played a part and would continue to even now that he’s clear.
It’s due to Krumholtz’s health. The show has had to use dialog to cover for his fluctuating weight.
I assumed the guy at the demonstration with the megaphone was Larry Kramer- definitely had the look more than piano guy.
Candy’s movie is kind of the answer to Dworkin’s attack:
“for one (SW) women who can deal with her own comodification how many can’t?”The answer is every women, not only SW; have to.
great ep. don’t want this show to end just yet.
Eileen asking the waitress how she put up with those demeaning shitheads didn’t really come across as realistic to me. She started the series as a prostitute, and one with no pimp to boot. It’s likely she’s had her own (maybe worse) experiences with rotten clients that one nonetheless has to tolerate. And sure, that job doesn’t define her and she’s spent most of the years since 1971 in a position of relative power, but still, the Eileen in my head would have too much sense to ask that. Not unless she was looking to be told to fuck off.I did, however, enjoy seeing her reenact the waitress’ menu-sitting after the call with her son. It was a little thing, but it almost made the episode for me. As far as she’s gotten since the first season, there’s still a man there acting like he’s entitled to her. Adam could use a good smack over the head for how he treated his mother this season.
I felt that way too. Kind of weak writing for Candy not to recognize that part of the world.
I thought that, too, at first, but on further reflection, I think it was a rhetorical question on Eileen’s part.Of course she knew. I think she was just, in that moment, coming to realize how the experience she wanted to convey was so much bigger than that of streetwalkers and in asking the question she was starting to figure out how to put in words what she’d express to Harvey later.
Maggie Gyllenhaal is one of the most fearless and underrated actors out there. I have never seen her give less than 100%. She is the heart and soul of “The Deuce”. Brilliant.
Am I insane, or was the cop who said something that goaded Paul at the rally into action played by the guy who plays Titus’ construction worker boyfriend on Kimmy Shmidt?! I mean it seems odd that he’d play a one line role, but…
Please tell me why they star3d a fire and who is responsible