#ian richardson
I never saw more than two episodes of the American version of House of Cards. I had previously luxuriated in the original Masterpiece Theatre trilogy: House of Cards (1990) To Play the King (1993) and The Final Cut (1995).
There’s just no comparison.
That’s because Masterpiece Theatre gave us Ian Richardson as Francis Urquhart, Chief Whip for Parliament’s Conservative Party, and for all practical—and delightful—purposes a defining presentation of the Machiavellian English politician.
Urquhart is an ace manipulator of all he encounters, and Parliament is his deck. Restive and calculating one minute, impish and self-satisfied the next, Urquhart is technically a villain, but it’s impossible not to root for the success of his schemes and machinations. His knowing asides to the camera—all withering disdain, smirking recognitions, and I-told-you-so’s—charm the vulnerable viewer who watches from the less exciting, innocent side of the fourth wall.
It’s also impossible not to hear thrilling echoes, now and then, of Laurence Olivier’s Richard III, or Micheál MacLiammóir’s unsurpassed Iago (from Orson Welles’ 1951 production of Othello). Speaking of Orson Welles, there’s a touch of Harry Lime in Frances Urquhart, and more than might be comfortable for viewers as the story progresses.
I’m watching now, compliments of BritBox, my favorite streaming channel in the whole wide world. Will I adopt, as many modern day, real-world English politicians have now done, the “Urquhart’s Avoidance” ploy for my own workplace?
You may very well reach that conclusion. But I couldn’t possibly comment.
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Brazil(1985) dir. by Terry Gilliam.
After1984came the 1985 version of a futuristic dystopia. More corny 80′s, but indeed - also more fun.
5.5 - 6.0
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