Monday, March 7, 2016

Review: House of Cards

(WARNING: Some mild spoilers ahead.)

I find as I have gotten older, little things tend to set off heartfelt emotions more and more. Sappy scenes in tv shows or movies that I would have pointed to and called gratuitous in my younger years, now seem to work on me.

Like me, the Netflix series seems to have found it's soft spot in it's 4th season, and I mean soft spot in the most positive way. While I am only through 5 episodes of the season (I refuse to binge watch 13 episodes), I have noticed a different feel to this season. Without giving away too much, I find myself rooting for Kevin Spacey's Frank Underwood much more this season. It seems the biggest bastard in Washington has been turned into a sympathetic figure.

Even more striking, Claire Underwood (played with understated brilliance by Robin Wright) is a much less sympathetic figure. Certainly, we have all felt for her travails with Frank over the first 3 seasons. But this is the first season she has really started to play the game for herself, and it appears she has taken notes from her husband over the years.

Aside from the acting, which is top-notch, the storylines feel like they are pulled from the headlines, yet are mixed together in such a way as to make them fresh. In summary, the writing is superb.

Combined with the acting, this show feels authentic, like this could be what happens in Washington. While this is a somewhat scary thought, I will admit I wouldn't mind having a President Underwood. Kevin Spacey for President?

Rating: 4 1/2 stars out of 5. Shows like this make cutting the cable easy and painless.

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