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House of Cards USA (2013)

2013 · Drama,Thriller · political-drama, workplace-prestige

House of Cards USA poster

House of Cards (US) is a dark, cerebral prestige political drama built almost entirely around Kevin Spacey's magnetic performance as the ruthlessly ambitious Frank Underwood, a US Congressman who schemes his way to the presidency using manipulation, blackmail, and betrayal. Its signature device — Frank's conspiratorial fourth-wall addresses to the viewer — creates an unusually intimate audience identification with an antihero. The show rewards viewers who enjoy strategic plotting and amoral power dynamics over action or sentiment. Seasons 1 through 5 are consistently praised as gripping, intelligent television; season 6, produced after Spacey's removal, is near-universally regarded by reviewers as a catastrophic collapse that retroactively damages the legacy of the whole series.

From the reviewers

House of Cards is highly addictive.
although House of Cards has little interest in jaw-dropping images or gruesome make-up effects, it delivers just as many dark thrills to keep you glued to your seat as the action-heavy flagships of HBO and AMC
it's also so much more than that. House of Cards combines a vast number of genres; it's a thriller, a love story, a black comedy and a satire - and a very interesting lesson in US politics
House of Cards was heavily inspired by certain works of William Shakespeare. The character of Francis Underwood is a combination of Richard III and Macbeth, and in true Shakespeare manner, he often addresses the audience directly to inform us of his evil schemes.
Spacey's portrayal of a charming but deadly predator is simply perfect; despite the character's obvious willingness to go to extreme lengths to get what he wants, Spacey always keeps him believable and avoids the temptation of making him appear like a caricature

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