Netflix show targets political intrigue
I’ve recently learned about a Democratic Congressman who’s among the most disgusting public servants to ever take any oath of office. That’s right, he’s a Democrat. And yes, I’m about to slander him. Sue me. I don’t care.
The Majority Whip of the U.S. House of Representatives — Frank Underwood (D-N.C.) — is neither a liberal or a conservative, and he has no particular ideology to speak of. He’s only interested in the destruction of his (real or imagined) political enemies. He’s a pathetic scoundrel.
Before I carry this any further, Underwood is an entirely fictional character. He’s at the center of the brand new nearly-original (It’s based on a 1990’s British series.) Netflix offering — “House of Cards” — a Washington, D.C.-based political drama that’s sure to raise eyebrows and delight millions of fans.
With the introduction of this ambitious programming, Netflix is thumbing its nose at those behemoths HBO and Showtime; throwing down the gauntlet in the face of existing brick-and-mortar movie rental stores; and even making DVR’s, TiVo and On Demand seem like yesterday’s technologies.
It released the entire 13 episode first season of “House of Cards” to its streaming-enabled customers at once.
There’s no having to wait a week to gasp about Underwood’s latest ruthless escapade. You can view them at will, and time permitting, in one sitting.
Judging from the first four episodes (Netflix calls them chapters), I have no doubt some people will devour the entire first season, and even want more, after seeing the first few minutes of the first.
The opening sequence in that first episode is startling. There is a loud thump outside of Underwood’s Washington home. His neighbor’s dog has been hit by a car.
Underwood kneels before the dog, and he speaks directly to the camera. “There are two kinds of pain. The sorta pain that makes you strong, or useless pain; the sort of pain that’s only suffering. I have no patience for useless things. Moments like this require someone who will act. Who will do the unpleasant thing. The necessary thing,” he says as he puts the injured animal out of its misery.
Kevin Spacey plays Underwood, and the matter-of-fact way he utters those lines, and dispatches the dog, is a jaw-dropper, with a healthy dose of foreshadowing.
The device of a character breaking the fourth wall, and speaking directly to the audience, is nothing new. If you watch NBC’s “The Office,” you’ve seen it used, and to great effect. But that’s comedy.
Given the chance, Spacey, with those expertly deadpan readings, it’s polished to a high-gloss.
Underwood may be engaged in some heavy face-to-face business with one of his legislative colleagues, but he doesn’t fail to let the audience know that he’s either bored or not even paying any attention. He does it with little more than a raised eyebrow.
Robin Wright plays Underwood’s wife, Claire, who is every bit as ruthless as her husband. She’s the woman behind the man, with a scowl and a kick to her husband’s ego for good measure.
Together, the Underwoods make a delightfully power-hungry, power couple, who is as devoted to political skullduggery as they are to each other.
We learn near the beginning of the first episode that Underwood had worked tirelessly for the election of the new president. He’d been promised his efforts would earn him a turn as secretary of state. But the president reneged on his promise, and Underwood, like that wounded dog, felt the pain.
But unlike the dog, the pain he felt was “the kind that makes you strong.” He then begins working just as tirelessly to become the prime source of the new president’s undoing.
It makes for some mighty intriguing viewing, with a protagonist that is so cutthroat, Tony Soprano would see him on the sidewalk and cross the street.
Unlike other political dramas, like “The West Wing,” “House of Cards” doesn’t drag us through dense policy discussions. It’s more concerned about delivering us to a world where evil exists, and is, at the same time, riveting.
Edward A. Owens is a three time Emmy Award winner and 20 year veteran of television news. Email him at freedoms@bellatlantic.net