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Thursday, June 8, 2017

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com ARTS

By CONNOR GRADY

Daily Arts Writer

“We don’t submit to terror. We

make the terror.”

Those were the ominous words

that “House of Cards” left us with at
the end of its gripping Season Four
finale. After four years of witnessing
Frank (Kevin Spacey, “American
Beauty”) and Claire Underwood
(Robin Wright, “Forrest Gump”)
conspire, deceive and murder their
way to the White House, audiences
were inclined to believe Frank’s
fateful line. In “House of Cards”’s
newest season, the Underwoods
more than fulfill their vow to
inspire fear. Picking up right where
Season Four ended, the Season Five
premiere documents Frank’s brutal
re-election campaign and attempt
to obstruct a Congressional inves-
tigation
into

his scheme to
usurp the presi-
dency. “House
of Cards” has
seemingly
learned
from

some
of
its

Season
Three

struggles
and

realized that its
ideal show emerges when the focus
is shifted away from simply show-
ing policymaking occurring.

The hype surrounding this lat-

est “House of Cards” season has
been building for some time, espe-
cially with this new season pre-
miering three months later than
the series’s traditional release date
in February. The show recognizes
and exploits this fervor attached
to the show, opening with a bang
in the form of a breathtaking scene
in which Frank unexpectedly vis-
its Congress, demanding that they
declare war on the Islamic Caliph-
ate
Organization.
Repeatedly

shouting “I don’t care,” Frank’s
bold, fiery rhetoric sets the tone for
a conflict-oriented season.

The success of this most recent

“House of Cards” season is largely
a result of its continued reliance on a
talented and diverse cast. One of the
hallmarks of the show has always
been Spacey and Wright’s emotion-
ally-charged performances, and
both live up to the massive bar they
have established. Beyond the two
main stars, Joel Kinnaman’s (“Easy
Money”) increased role as Will
Conway has allowed him to high-
light his range. This season also sees
the return of the enigmatic Mal-

colm Madera (“Sobrevivo”) from
Season Two. Elsewhere, “House
of Cards”’s vets Michael Kelly
(“Changeling”) and Paul Sparks
(“Boardwalk Empire”) remain as
strong and steady as ever.

For as much as the series appears

to have corrected some of its past
missteps, this newest season still
struggles with its pacing. Even
after “House of Cards” dedicated
the second half of Season Four to
Frank’s re-election campaign, the
show does not give audiences the
actual election until three episodes
into this latest season. The series
entirely reverses its gradual course
soon after that by implementing a
nine-week gap between two cru-
cial episodes. It’s this type of incon-
sistent pacing that baffles viewers
and leaves them playing catch-up at
times.

Despite its erratic pac-

ing, “House of Cards”’s lat-
est season remains deftly
produced, with its camera
work particularly strong.
The series continues to
heavily feature effective
wide frame shots and bring
viewers into the action
through numerous close-
up scenes. Beyond these

shots, “House of Cards”’s most
recent season exposes audiences to
more Capitol Hill landmarks, with
gorgeous, sweeping scenes at the
Washington Monument and the
Jefferson Memorial.

Beyond its outstanding cinema-

tography, “House of Cards”’s latest
season also benefits from a larger
role for Claire. Claire’s path to
power has been slowly building over
the course of the series, and Season
Five continues to explore the First
Lady’s
presidential
aspirations.

With her ruthlessness now match-
ing Frank’s, and possibly exceeding
it, Claire appears bent on following
a similar path of deception as Frank
to obtain the Oval Office. In one
especially tense scene, Claire’s cal-
lous, vindictive nature resurfaces,
as she chillingly tells Vice President
Donald Blythe (Reed Birney, “The
Blacklist”), “You’re a fool, Donald.
You always were. You and your
dumb dead wife that you never, ever
shut up about.”

With her ever-increasing role

in “House of Cards,” Claire seems
bound for her own presidential bid
in the not-so-distant future. For
now, however, enjoy the excellent
bit of controlled chaos that is the
fifth season of “House of Cards.”

‘House of Cards’ returns with a bang

‘House of Cards’

Season 5 Review

Netflix

TV REVIEW