There’s a reason, beyond its catchy title, that “Dead Still” has quickly gained a foothold in the crowded TV universe. The Acorn TV series, starring Michael Smiley as a “post-mortem photographer” in 19th century Dublin, plays as a darkly comic (with touches of slapstick) crime thriller that offers a fascinating look into a weird Victorian-era occupation: taking photographs of corpses “posing” with their very-much-alive family members. “It was a plaything of the very rich and was only for a specialized few,” says Smiley, best-known to American audiences as Benny “Deadhead” Silver (opposite Idris Elba) on “Luther.” “It coincided with the Victorian-era fascination with morbidity.
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