Category: TV
How Jeff Daniels and Kevin Spacey made Politics Cool Again
In 1976, politics were interesting, entertaining and frightening. Presidents were getting impeached, political parties were playing spy games, Communists were out to get us and massive protests were stopping wars. During this period in film political thrillers and documentaries ruled. All the President’s Men, Marathon Man, Three Days of the Condor and Hearts and Minds all had significance and dramatic punch.
Recently, cultural meaning in film (or even politics) has been few and far between. Presidents have become punch lines, espionage is reserved for James Bond or Jason Bourne and documentaries have been reclassified as reality television, but shows like Newsroom and House of Cards are making politics cool again.
These smart, witty political satires are driving a new wave of character-based programming. Characters like Jeff Daniels’s Will McAvoy in Newsroom and Kevin Spacey’s Congressman Francis Underwood in House of Cards are two of the best new characters on television and even if on the surface the characters are the complete antithesis of each other, they share some pretty startling similarities.
Newsroom follows McAvoy as the anchor of News Night, the second most watched news program on cable television. The program focuses on the purity of journalism and its duty to shine a light on the corruptness of politics and politicians. McAvoy is an elitist representation of the media’s role in educating the public.
On the other hand, House of Cards glorifies the back room deals and shady maneuvers that happen on Capital Hill everyday. Underwood is power hungry and dangerous, willing to get ahead by any means necessary. His desperate grasps for the top are meant to pull the wool over constituents eyes to create a version of reality they will vote for.
While McAvoy is a card carrying Republican and Underwood is the Majority Whip for the Democratic party, both men are basically the same character. They have little patience for those they see as inferior and even less for those who act superior. Their relationships and lives go up and down and their impressive mood swings are only equalled by their intellect.
Each man is seconded by a just as screen-grabbing woman. In Newsroom Emily Motimer plays MacKenzie McHale, McAvoy’s ex-girlfriend and current executive producer. In House of Cards, Robin Wright plays the just as provocative Mrs. Underwood. Both women are even stronger than their counterparts and are able to sway their opinions with a flick of their fingers.
McAvoy and Underwood represent the untouchable and overwhelmingly powerful nature of politics as a whole. To the common man, the big-wigs in DC are completely untouchable. McAvoy is our blunt and honest connection. Underwood is the smiling con-man we vote for.
Both men tell it like it is, there are no secrets between them and their audiences. Underwood directs his comments right to the viewer by breaking the fourth wall and as a news anchor McAvoy also talks directly to the camera. Even with these men’s complete candor and bluntness its hard to tell if the America they represent actually exists.
Regardless of how government and 24-hour news stations are actually run, there is no doubt how entertaining these programs are. With House of Cards being nominated for 10 Primetime Emmys and Newsroom receiving a criminally low 3, there is no doubt we will be seeing more of these entertaining, fast-paced political dramas.
The Not Funny Comedy
For years, sitcoms have ruled the world of televised comedies. Those beloved groups of families and friends with odd quirks and a laugh track to back up their jokes have made us comfortable and set the bar for what is funny. The mix of comedy and touching moments has drawn in audiences and made us content, but a recent trend on cable has taken that ease away from us.
These programs have taken the situations out of the sitcoms, substituting strong characters for definitive plots and structure. They are based around hard-luck protagonists whose fortune just keeps getting worse. Often these characters are awkward and well-meaning, but just seem to get it wrong time and time again.
One of the first critically praised and popular programs of this type is FX’s Louie. Based on and peppered with the self-deprecating comedy of Louis C.K., the program follows Louie through often failed attempts to raise his two young daughters right, his also often failed attempts to date and his comedy career, which while not failing is also not exactly taking off.
Louie is extremely awkward and often unrelatable, but every time something goes wrong for him it’s hard not to laugh at his misfortune. In this sense, the genre has created situations in which it becomes unclear whether to laugh or cringe or simply sit and watch the ridiculousness.
Similarly, HBO’s VEEP is centered around the trials of Emmy-winning Julia Louis-Dreyfus’s Vice President Selina Meyer as she attempts to make use of her office, which she is quite often reminded is actually powerless. At her side is a cast of aides including the ass-kissing Tony Hale, the old vet Matt Walsh who is phoning it in and the young up and comers Anna Chlumsky and Reid Scott who are constantly butting heads to further their career.
Each episode has no shortage of wit and banter, but once again nothing ever seems to go right for the Vice President. As she tries to hold up her campaign promises she is often shut down by bureaucratic bullshit mostly handed down by the unnamed and unseen pontiff himself. The only thing that settles her is that the job is only four years, well eight if they win again, twelve if she decides to run, sixteen if there’s a second term.
The newest addition to the genre is IFC’s Maron. Like Louie, this program centers around comedian Marc Maron and his podcasts that he records in his garage with friends and comedians. As the standard is in this genre, Marc just can’t get right. Twice divorced, he lives at home with his cats, often dwelling in his own self-pity. Less than a season in, it is hard to say how the show will develop, but Maron fits the criteria of the unfunny comedy.
Laugh tracks have become a thing of the past as it becomes harder and harder to decipher when it is appropriate to laugh. The answer is easy, when these programs are on it is always appropriate to laugh. Louie, VP Meyer and Maron never seem to get things right, and I for one never hope they do.
Spartacus: An American Tale
Over the last four years, the Starz original program Spartacus has managed to shock and awe audiences with its trademark stunning visuals and unabashed use of violence and nudity, but this Friday it will all come to an end as Starz airs the series finale. And even though the program’s precarious past nearly ended its run before it started, Spartacus remains one of those truly Americanized versions of history.
After dominating the arena as a gladiator, escaping from servitude and slaughtering any Roman in his path, Spartacus will reach his final destination this week when he takes on the the mighty Crassus. This climatic collision will surely be gut-wrenchingly gory (hopefully literally) and probably preluded by a raunchy sex scene (fingers crossed), but the underlying theme is one that is especially American… freedom.
Spartacus and the rebel forces that follow him are all freed slaves who are fighting the empire that once held them in servitude. If you can ignore the frequent dismemberments and more than occasional full frontal shot, there are also scenes of pure drama that elicit the American ideal that is freedom. They envision a world where they can live in peacefully without prejudice, but of course first they must defeat the single most powerful entity in the entire world, the Roman Empire.
And did I mention the show is explicitly violent and full of nudity? Let’s face it, if there is one thing Americans like more than freedom it has to be a tie between a good beheading and great set of… wits. Even if the story line doesn’t pique your interest and the pronounless dialogue distracts you, at least there is some good soft-core smut to get you interested.
In fact, since the death of star Andy Whitfield after the first season, the producers of Spartacus have upped the ante. Not so gradually, the gore has gotten gorier and the nakedness has gotten… well, nakeder.
So whether you watch it for the story (history class on steroids), the jaw-dropping visual accomplishments (things have come a long way since Kirk Douglas) or the nearly constant threat of nudity (seriously, everyone is one pull on their toga away from baring all) tune in this Friday. And for those of you who lie and say you don’t like these things, you are threatening the American way of life.
And the Nerds Inherit the Earth
It used to be tough out there for a wimp. In the ’80s and ’90s nerds were nothing but comedic after thoughts for jocks and dropouts to laugh at as they jammed them into lockers. Anthony Michael Hall literally had to create a woman that would give him the time of day (even Ally Sheedy got Emilio), Screech couldn’t land a date with Lisa to save his life and though Revenge of the Nerds was awesome not even Robert Carradine could ever land a gig that didn’t require thick-rimmed glasses.
But if you havn’t noticed, things have changed for the socially awkward, vertically challenged and chronically asthmatic as of late. The nerdly sidekicks have become award-winning stars and in some cases even get the girl! Hall had an inspired stint in The Dead Zone, Carradine and Nerds costar Curtis Armstrong host a reality gameshow centered around geek culture and Screech… well let’s not talk about Screech.
With the entertainment industry fluttering over the awkward, quirky and intelligent it’s only right to acknowledge the nerdiest of them all with the top 5 geeks in entertainment:
Joss Whedon: The creator of nerd favorite television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and it’s spinoff Angel, he has also invented two cult classic series that ended before their time in Firefly and Dollhouse. This past year he lived out every nerd’s dream when he directed the massive blockbuster, superhero smash The Avengers. Nothing is slowing this nerd down as his followup Cabin in the Woods (written by Whedon and directed by Buffy alum Drew Goddard) was a fun and scary romp of satire and homage.
Dr. Sheldon Cooper: While Sheldon may not exactly be real, Jim Parsons’ portrayal of this obsessive compulsive genius in The Big Bang Theory has made him one of the most popular characters on television. Cooper has coined numerous catch phrases (Bazinga!) and caused a spike in The Flash t-shirts. Parsons has also won two Emmys and a Golden Globe for the role, but that’s neither here not there.
Felicia Day: Her first appearance in nerdom was when she guest starred in the final season of Buffy as a prospective slayer, but since then Day has become the premier female character actor on only the geekiest of television shows. Her breakout role was playing Codex, the nerdy yet lovable lead in The Guild a popular web-series created by Day herself. Since then she has starred in Whedon’s web-series Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog and has had small roles in Dollhouse, Eureka and Supernatural.
Neil deGrasse Tyson: There’s already one fake scientist on this list, how about a real one? This American astrophysicist is best known for his push and eventual success in officially declassifying Pluto as the ninth planet in 2006. More recently, deGrasse Tyson continues to be a forerunner in his field as well as being a frequent guest on Real Time with Bill Maher, The Daily Show and the king of all nerd shows Jeopardy.
Pauley Perrette: Better known as Abby Sciuto, the tattooed rocker chick who doubles as Mark Harmon’s forensic scientist in the extremely popular crime drama N.C.I.S., Perrette has become one of the most recognized characters on television during the show’s ten-year run. With her trademark Big Gulp, long black hair and occasional studded collar she has became a frequent fantasy for nerds and geeks alike.
There they are. The leaders of the loser, the sultans of social awkwardness, the deans of dork and also some of the most interesting and fun people in the entertainment industry. The nerds are here to stay as cult classics become mainstream and the unnoticed become the center of attention. GO GEEK!
Old School Cool with New School Flair
Now in its fourth season, FX’s Justified has quickly evolved from a shoot-em-up cop drama to the coolest show on television. Hollywood journeyman Timothy Olyphant has always been a respected and interesting character actor, but his role as the trigger-happy U.S. Marshall Raylan Givens who Internal Affairs “has on speed dial” is one of the most interesting and fun characters on television.
After being forced from Miami to his hometown of Harlan County, Kentucky in the series premier due to his propensity for shooting without warning, Givens has since taken on a Dirty Harry-esque role in the lawless backwoods of this “Modern Western” setting. With his John Wayne hat, quips that he “saw in a movie once” and “Gary Cooper walk” Raylan and his always present pistol have become the undisputed force of good (or almost good) in Harlan County.
His mirror opposite (or mirror image depending on how you look at it) is Boyd Crowder, played flawlessly by Walton Goggins (no joke, that’s his name). In the last four years, Crowder has morphed from a drug pusher to reformed criminal to Christ-like prophet and finally to the redneck crime lord we know him as today. His cool, calm demeanor is just as spot on as Raylan’s, but it is far more creepy.
The coolness doesn’t stop there! Surrounding these pinnacles of badassery are great regular characters such as Raylan’s coworkers (an ex-sniper who is looking more and more like his mentor, a hot-tempered lady cop who is losing her edge and their aging boss who has given up fighting them). Or try Crowder’s crew which includes his bitter cousin who was once shot by Boyd himself or his hard nosed sister-in-law/girlfriend who runs the family’s local whorehouse (P.S. she also dated Raylan).
The characters are one thing, but you have to give it up to the writing staff for taking a simple idea like Justified and making it so Goddamned cool. Every character is unbearably quippy and devastatingly sharp despite the fact not one of them graduated high school. It’s like Swamp People meets Glengarry Glen Ross.
Despite Crowder’s yearly drastic changes, Givens hasn’t even changed his impeccably well polished boots. Each season he dates a super hot blond southern belle, gets into trouble with a different branch of law enforcement and inevitably dares some unwitting scumbag to draw on him (SPOILER: It ends badly for the scumbag).
This season, Ron Eldard, Joseph Mazzello and Hatfield & McCoys Lindsay Pulsipher have been added to the cast, but it will be hard to top Mykelti Williamson and Neal McDonough’s outstandingly audacious and unsettling characters from last season. Even so, there is no doubt Givens and Crowder’s clash will remain extremely cool and always stylish throughout the year.
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