Sam Smith – One
of the most striking things about the new film, Gone Girl, is how much it has in common with House of Cards. Not in terms of plot or characters but in its
underlying unspoken thesis that getting along in today’s world requires
mendacity, manipulation and media disinformation. By the end of the film all of the decent or
otherwise sympathetic characters are gone or defeated including Ben Affleck’s
sister and the detective trying to figure out what happened. The same is true
in House of Cards; you don’t last if
you are decent or even just reasonable.
Wikpedia describes the problem in House of Cards this way:
Bob Samuels of The Huffington Post compares House of
Cards to The West Wing. He notes that whereas The West
Wing depicted "political idealists dedicated to the discussion of
public policy", House of Cards presents "the cynical
manipulations of isolated careerists". Samuels says that in addition to
presenting a new method of distribution of content, the show represents a
change in our society by demonstrating the change in what is perceived as
popular political television drama: "the series presents a social shift
from political idealism to social cynicism". Samuels defines cynicism as
"the desire to succeed in a system in which one does not believe".
Welcome to the new America, folks.
2 comments:
How does one succeed when there is ever less useful work for human beings? Our bad educators prepare their victims for the disappearing world of jobs and work. Lying, cheating, extortion and stealing become the only roads to riches.
Doesn't a more cynical and perceptive view of politicians do more good than harm?
"It's Brezhnev in America" - spoken in the voice of Ronald Reagan
Post a Comment