House of Cards
Starring: Robin Wright (73 episodes), Michael Kelly (72 episodes), Kevin Spacey (65 episodes), Justin Doescher (52 episodes), Derek Cecil (50 episodes), Jayne Atkinson (38 episodes), Nathan Darrow (35 episodes), Mahershala Ali (33 episodes), Boris McGiver (30 episodes), Paul Sparks (28 episodes), Molly Parker (25 episodes), Neve Campbell (25 episodes), Jeremy Holm (25 episodes), Michel Gill (25 episodes), Marla Aaron Wapner (25 episodes), Nini Le Huynh (24 episodes), Gregory Divers (23 episodes), Elizabeth Marvel (23 episodes), Larry Pine (22 episodes), Campbell Scott (19 episodes), Sakina Jaffrey (19 episodes), Constance Zimmer (19 episodes), Rachel Brosnahan (19 episodes), Curtiss Cook (18 episodes), Kristen Connolly (17 episodes), Sebastian Arcelus (17 episodes), Reed Birney (17 episodes), Jimmi Simpson (17 episodes), Antoinette Montgomery (17 episodes), Gerald McRaney (16 episodes), Dominique McElligott (15 episodes), Joel Kinnaman (15 episodes), Reg E. Cathey (15 episodes), Kate Mara (15 episodes), Damian Young (14 episodes), Julian Gamble (14 episodes), Lars Mikkelsen (13 episodes), Corey Stoll (12 episodes), Kate Lyn Sheil (12 episodes), Patricia Clarkson (12 episodes), Colm Feore (11 episodes), Mozhan Marno (11 episodes), Sandrine Holt (10 episodes), Korey Jackson (12 episodes), Kim Dickens (9 episodes), James Martinez (9 episodes), Robert Poletick (9 episodes), Andrew Polk (10 episodes), Eisa Davis (8 episodes), Malcolm Madera (8 episodes), Towanda Underdue (8 episodes), Diane Lane (7 episodes), Greg Kinnear (7 episodes), Ben Daniels (7 episodes), Joanna Going (7 episodes), Wendy Moniz-Grillo (7 episodes), Benito Martinez (7 episodes), Susan Pourfar (7 episodes), Kristen Sieh (7 episodes), Cody Fern (6 episodes), Dan Ziskie (6 episodes), Kenneth Tigar (6 episodes), Ellen Burstyn (5 episodes), Terry Chen (5 episodes), Athena Karkanis (5 episodes), Kathleen Chalfant (5 episodes), Shawn Doyle (5 episodes), Alexander Sokovikov (5 episodes), Libby Woodbridge (5 episodes), Michael Gabel (5 episodes), Sam Page (5 episodes), LisaGay Hamilton (4 episodes), Boris Kodjoe (4 episodes), Kelly AuCoin (4 episodes), Gil Birmingham (4 episodes), Christina Bennett Lind (4 episodes), Daisy Tahan (4 episodes), Kathryn Browning (4 episodes), Albert Jones (2 episodes), Geoffrey Cantor (2 episodes), Darwin Shaw (2 episodes)
Directed by: James Foley (12 episodes), Robin Wright (10 episodes), John David Coles (5 episodes), Alik Sakharov (5 episodes), Carl Franklin (4 episodes), Agnieszka Holland (4 episodes), Tucker Gates (4 episodes), Tom Shankland (3 episodes), Allen Coulter (2 episodes), David Fincher (2 episodes), Charles McDougall (2 episodes), Joel Schumacher (2 episodes), John Dahl (2 episodes), Roxann Dawson (2 episodes), Daniel Minahan (2 episodes), Jodie Foster (1 episode), Alex Graves (1 episode)
Rating: TV-MA
Genre: Drama
2013-2018
Seasons Seen:
Tim: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6
Summary: Congressman Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey) and his ambitious wife, Claire (Robin Wright) navigate the treacherous waters of Washington D.C. with their constant focus on amassing more power.
Review:
Tim: I was late getting into House of Cards. I knew it was the flagship original show for Netflix, David Fincher produced and directed a few episodes. It was actually my love for Netflix's Mindhunter that finally pushed me to check out his other series. I'm really glad I did. I thoroughly enjoyed the journey that was House of Cards. I didn't always love the show or some of the decisions made, but it was an engrossing, fascinating look at Washington politics. It's sad how the series eventually ended, but I'm really glad I took this ride.
I know this series was based British novels, but the adaptation to American politics was flawless. We're introduced to the Underwoods, a ruthless couple determined to continue their political climb no matter what collateral damage occurs. It's a fascinating look at unscrupulous politics, but it really paints the picture of the entire Washington D.C. scene. The media plays a large role in the story, as do foreign affairs, big business' selfish interest in what happens in D.C., and so much more. The story unfolds wonderfully season-to-season, as the Underwoods fight savagely to hold onto and build their power while confronting a series of challenges to their rise. It's always a fascinating, complex journey.
It's hard to talk about Kevin Spacey's role here because of his ignominious firing from the show. By the accounts I've read, Spacey may indeed be despicable as a person. I acknowledge that, but will also talk about the merits of his work here. Frankly, Spacey is a terrific actor and has always been. It was wonderful to see him step into the role of Frank Underwood. His ruthlessness, his pettiness, his cunning, and yet his charisma all made him a fascinating character. I never actually liked him (which is amazing), yet I felt some kind of emotional connection with him. That's a testament to Spacey's performance. He never tries to make Frank likeable, but he tries to have you see the world through his eyes. That makes him at least slightly sympathetic, even when he's doing atrocious things. His performance here was incredible. Firing him after season 5 was the right move, but the show took a serious hit without his presence. I might be disgusted by Spacey, but I marveled at his talent here.
As much as this might have been Spacey's show, Robin Wright emerges as perhaps the best surprise. She's obviously talented, but what she did as Claire Underwood is truly remarkable. She had this character emerge as formidable, a worthy partner (and sometime adversary) to Spacey's Frank. Wright carried this show in many ways- as a supporting character, as a co-lead, and when Spacey went, as the lead. She also directed the second most episodes. It would be a mistake to undervalue how much of House of Cards' success was due to Wright. I often had issues with Claire and especially some of her decisions in later seasons, but I was always impressed with what Wright did in this unforgettable role.
This series attracted an insane amount of talent. Michael Kelly is certainly an underrated hero here, even though his praises have consistently been sung. He received a good deal of award nominations for his role as Doug Stamper, but you couldn't overstate how critical he was to this series. His arc was a winding one and he was called upon to do so many things. Doug is the character I probably come back to the most as I reflect on this show. Again, not a likeable character, but one that feels complex, interesting, and memorable. He's wonderful here. I loved Derek Cecil's performance here, too. Seth was always interesting to me and even when he was whiny and annoying, he was fantastic. Mahershala Ali spent a lot of time here as Remy Danton and the series benefits from that presence. 33 episodes is quite a lot and Ali makes his mark on the series. Boris McGiver was incredible as Tom Hammerschmidt. His role starts out small, but increases as the series goes on and he becomes a more and more sympathetic character. Paul Sparks did some incredible work here. Molly Parker was solid and enjoyable. I liked seeing Neve Campbell here, although her character was never as interesting as the series imagined. Still, getting Campbell for 25 episodes was a joy. Michel Gill did outstanding work. Elizabeth Marvel was a force and added such incredible strength to her character. Campbell Scott emerged as one of my favorite characters in the series. I'm not sure how this happened, but I was watching an episode and realized that I just loved everything he was doing in the role. His character of Mark Usher just made the episode whenever he showed up. Constance Zimmer was effective in her role and Kate Mara made a major impression, especially in that first season. She was so critical to the film's success and Zoe Barnes remains a memorable character all these seasons later. Jimmi Simpson and Gerarld McRaney were both excellent in smaller roles, but made outsized contributions. Joel Kinnaman shows up and absolutely dominated the season plus he was here. I've rarely liked Kinnaman in his movies, but he was excellent here. Reg E. Cathey was so good, he won an Emmy for Best Guest Star. Lars Mikkelsen was incredible as Petrov. I just loved every second of his screen time. Corey Stoll was so important in those early seasons. I never really liked Patricia Clarkson here, but I suppose she was fine. Colm Feore had such a small role, but was good. I was really excited to see Diane Lane and Greg Kinnear join the final season, but that season was a bit of a mess, so their impact was minimized. Kim Dickens made a huge impact in her supporting role, I really loved when she joined the cast. I suppose I could go on, but I've hit so many of the actors already. I can't remember another series where so many people joined in meaty, memorable roles. This series was fantastic at surrounding Spacey and Wright with just incredible talent. So many of these actors elevated their characters. This series has some of the greatest talent assembled I've ever seen.
I do want to hit a few of the larger themes of the series, so maybe skip this paragraph and it'll have some SPOILER ALERTS. I probably loved the show the most in the first few seasons, where Frank was clawing his way to the top. His ambition was infectious and it was great fun to watch. His ability to maneuver himself into the Vice-President chair was fascinating. Where he goes from there made sense, but it damped my enjoyment of the series a bit. Once he achieved his goals and then just fought to preserve (rather than gain) hurt the series just a bit. This all comes to a head after season 5, when Spacey disappears from the series. It's strange, it actually came at the perfect time and while it's abrupt, the series explains it decently. It felt like the series really could shift to Claire, as the story was going in that direction anyway. It was a big mistake to have Frank's presence still felt so strongly in that final season. It was a missed opportunity to really give Claire the spotlight that character so wanted. The last season was decent, but clearly the weakest one. It's always sad when a great series goes out with a whimper, but so many of them have.
It's easy to focus on how this series ended, but I instead want to focus on how great House of Cards was. The Frank and Claire Underwood story was such a wild one. It had everything- murder, betrayal, geopolitics, terrorism, corporate espionage, investigative reporting, and so much more. Frank and Claire are such memorable, unique characters. This series is one that I'm thankful I watched and it'll stay with me. It's one of the best things Netflix has done.
Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: N/A
If You Enjoyed This Series, We Recommend: Mindhunter, The West Wing, True Detective