TV Review: Centurion

Let the blood run free

Sat, June 29. Channel 7 9.30pm (AEST)

What’s it all about? In AD 117, a band of Roman Centurions fight for survival in the Scottish Highlands.

The Verdict: Centurion isn’t perfect but if you can stomach the blood it’s a suitably slick and thrilling ride.

3.5/5.0 from me, David.

Based on a 2,000 year old legend that tells of the mysterious disappearance of the invading Roman Ninth Legion in Scotland, Centurion opens in AD 117 as the Roman Empire’s mass land occupation reaches a stalemate in Britain’s north. 

A territory war is being waged between Roman armed forces and a vicious cluster of tribes known as the Picts and Roman Centurion Quintas Dias (Michael Fassbender, Inglourious Basterds) bare-chested and bound, is on the run from his Pictish captors. 

"It may not be in the same league as Gladiator in terms of spectacle but Centurion prefers to travel a darker path with a focus on the relentlessness of survival. If you can stomach the blood, it’s a suitably slick and thrilling ride."

Saved by the Ninth Legion, led by General Titus Virilus (Dominic West, The Wire), Quintas’ loyalty is secured and he vows to lead the Legion’s few remaining soldiers to asylum after they survive a bloody attack by the Picts.

What follows is a game of cat and mouse as the small band of men fight for survival in the freezing, forbidding Scottish Highlands, the Picts, spear-headed (pardon the pun) by the cold blooded super huntress Etain (former Bond girl Olga Kurylenko) in dogged pursuit.

Does my bum look big in this?

While director Neil Marshall’s screenplay, brought to life amidst the spectacular Scottish wilderness,  may raise questions of historical veracity ( Marshall freely admits he used his imagination to fill in the gaps), Centurion, unlike the more conservative Gladiator, pulls no punches in its portrayal of battle. Ultra violent and gruesome, this is bloodletting on a grand scale. As the endless crimson tide spurts, almost comically at times, you can’t help but think that along with the grisly veracity, Marshall (who proved to be a gore lover with The Descent and Dog Soldiers) is getting a kick out of the blood sport. Look out for the stomach churning arrow-through-the-eyeball scene.

The staring content went on for hours and hours........

But there’s more than blood on display here. Sure it’s a dark tale with imagery filtered in murky blues and greens but amongst the bleakness there’s ample suspense, a touch of humour and romance and some reasonably well rounded characters. Fassbender brings understated gravitas to proceedings while Kurylenko, whose Etain has been rendered mute by the Romans, does surprisingly well in conjuring up pure evil. Whether the history books concur or not, this is one poster girl for lethal girl power way ahead of her time.

Centurion isn’t perfect but Marshall does bring a fresh spin to the sword-and-sandals genre giving it a modern sensibility; from rapid-fire action sequences to no-nonsense parlance  – “When will people learn not to fuck with the Ninth?” fumes Virulus – and a tongue-in-cheek sensibility.

The fire warden would surely be sacked

While it may not be in the same league as Gladiator in terms of spectacle (fear not role players, there’s sufficiently epic battle-porn on display) Centurion prefers to travel a darker path with a focus on the relentlessness of survival. If you can stomach the blood, it’s a suitably slick and thrilling ride.

This review was originally published on Trespass Magazine, July 2010.

Flashback: Blades of Glory

Hijinks on ice

For a casual passer by, the sight of two male, heterosexual Hollywood actors serenading each other to the tune of Aerosmith’s I Don't Want To Miss A Thing would be bemusing to say the least.

But for Jon Heder and Will Arnett it’s all part of the shenanigans of the promotional trail for their film, the Ben Stiller produced comedy Blades of Glory which takes aim at a sport ripe for lampooning, that of world champion pairs figure skating.

“It’s colourful, it’s got a lot of costumes and crazy characters, set pieces, make up and feathers." 

Heder, who gained cult status as the eponymous dry witted nerd Napoleon Dynamite plays the effete Jimmy MacElroy, a former child prodigy now a champion ice skater who comes to blows with his arch rival Chazz Michael Michaels (Will Ferrell again dusting of his brand of testosterone fuelled lunacy after Talladega Nights) at the ice skating world championships.

 As a consequence, both are banned from competing as individuals but in a canny loophole the enemies decide to team up as the first male paired figure skaters ever. 

Heder and Ferrell in all their glory

Arnett, best known for his scene stealing role as Gob Bluth in the acclaimed sitcom Arrested Development plays Stranz Van Waldenberg one half of an unnaturally close sibling pair (Arnett’s now ex-wife Amy Poehler - Baby Mama - plays his sister) out to make sure they don’t succeed.

Sitting on a mock Olympic podium on a metropolitan ice skating rink in Sydney, Heder and Arnett have skated out for a brief press conference after the assembled media has been regaled with routines from champion ice-skaters, a much more subdued affair compared to the campily amusing routines and costumes in the film.

Arnett and ex Poehler

First up a question regarding accusations that the movie ridicules the gay community. 

Heder responds in jest; 

“I think it’s just simply a love story between two men but in the sense of brotherly love.” 

Next up, did Heder’s amusing dance moves as Napoleon Dynamite assist his transition to the ice? 

“No, not at all,” he says unequivocally. 

“When you dance on a hard floor it’s much easier. It becomes a different language when you go on the ice because you don’t have control of your feet.”

Heder, who bravely suggested he wear a costume replete with peacock feathers in the film, reveals there was pain involved when FILMINK asks of the cast’s rigorous training regimen. 

“I actually broke my ankle during training so that kind of messed things up for a while,” he says. 

“I was off the ice for about 5 or 6 months. Most of us, aside from Will [Arnett] had to learn how to just skate in general on our own and then had to learn pairs skating along with that and then routines. Every single time we felt like we were doing pretty well they’d say ‘Oh well, here’s a new challenge’ and then we’d get down and try to kill ourselves….”

Spandex coated victory

Arnett, who grew up ice skating in Canada adds; 

“Everybody had to get up on their skating so there was a sense of camaraderie because we were all in this thing together.”

The earnestness thankfully doesn’t last long with the actors who share little actual screen time dropping gags at pace. Playing enemies in the film, they say, wasn’t a stretch. 

“Off the set, it was always me in my trailer thinking ‘How am I going to take out Will today?” jests Heder.

Heder jests that being a real life twin informed his portrayal of one half of a trail blazing male skating pair alongside the anarchic screen persona of Ferrell. 

“We shared everything,” he said “There were moments when we looked into each other’s eyes and I could read his thoughts. It wasn’t a pretty place….”

When asked why Blades of Glory achieved box office gold in the US Heder responded; 

“It’s colourful, it’s got a lot of costumes and crazy characters, set pieces, make up and feathers." 

"If you hate fun……” Arnett interjects, “Don’t come to it.”

Blades of Glory airs tonight on GO at 9.30pm

First published online at filmink.com.au, June 2007.

Celeb Twitter Tantrum

Seething Seal sees red

Ah the celebrity twitter rant, that impulsive brain snap that like the harshly worded email or text you wish you hadn’t sent, can’t be taken back. The latest celebrity to go into damage control after releasing a Twitter tirade was Seal who today apologised for letting off some steam online. No doubt his painted fingernails were blushing red.

“[He’s visited] homeless shelters, provide time and love for disabled kids, represent at the Logies and not to mention bring hope to aspiring artists... across the nation with his authenticity and heart,” he tweeted. “Yet having a joint in the privacy of his hotel room is worthy of front page news???”

His beef? The Australian “trash” media’s treatment of his good bud, fellow The Voice coach and Good Charlotte rocker Joel Madden after police found a small amount of cannabis in his hotel room at Sydney’s The Star casino on Sunday.

Seal gave big props to Madden’s apparent good deeds for the community and lamented the fact a rock star can’t enjoy a spliff without it becoming front page news.

“[He’s visited] homeless shelters, provide time and love for disabled kids, represent at the Logies and not to mention bring hope to aspiring artists... across the nation with his authenticity and heart,” he tweeted. “Yet having a joint in the privacy of his hotel room is worthy of front page news???”

A rockstar who smokes weed. Who knew?!!

The “trash media”, that very forum he and his co-coaches use to promote themselves and the singing contest they front were recklessly cutting his hard done by and by no means privileged spinning-chair colleagues down.

"Way to respect a guest in your country trash media, way to make us feel welcome,” Seal tweeted. “Keep it up..sure we’ll be back next year…. and yes, I say we……because it’s just a matter of time before you gun us all down. Hell, you even [do] it [to] you’re own @DeltaGoodrem who’s a national treasure!!

"It’s a shame. I for one will not stand by and watch you attempt to destroy my Brother, you gun one you gun us all!”

Seal then took a swipe at The Star casino who he alleged orchestrated that Madden visit a cancer patient staying at the casino while police searched his room only to then evict him when the drugs were found.

“Shame on the Star…..you ask him to meet n greet a cancer victim in your hotel then send police to his room?? Nice…very classy..keep it up Judas. I’m done here………can’t wait to go home."



Seal's apology for his Twitter rant



There’s no trace of these comments on Seal’s official Twitter feed now, just a clarification and an apology for letting rip.

“It’s been almost 11 weeks away from my kids and me saying “I can’t wait to go home” was me missing being home with them.”

“I want to say I have loved being in Australia, I’ve loved working on The Voice and with an incredibly talented group of Australian artists.”

“I want to apologise for my rant earlier. Joel is one of my best friends and I was really hurting for him.”

Perhaps Seal could learn something from Madden’s own graceful response to the ruckus he himself started.

“Sydney is my adopted home and I appreciate the way the NSW police handled the situation,” Madden said in a statement. “They have informed me there will be no charges. I hope this didn't cause too much drama for everyone."

Movie Review: The Great Gatsby

With Luhrmann’s Gatsby, you get what you pay for.... Almost.

Genre: Drama. Rated: M

What’s It All About? F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1920's New York-set classic novel about the mysterious aristocrat Jay Gatsby and those that come into his orbit gets an epic makeover.

The Verdict: It’s not perfect but it is an impressive, engaging adaptation and less excessive than you might think.

3.5/5.0 from me, David.

Firstly a bit of perspective. Some critics have lashed out at Baz Luhrmann labelling his adaptation of The Great Gatsby overblown. Each to their own but let’s face it, complaining about a Baz Luhrmann film being over the top is akin to objecting to New Orleans during Mardi Gras season. Both are going to be extravagant, gaudy, raucous, big and bombastic. You get what you pay for.



Party like it's 1920-something



And Luhrmann’s Gatsby with thanks in no small part to his partner in life and artistry Catherine Martin is all of those things - to a point, around the mid way point that is. But after most of the frenetic party scenes have passed, the film becomes much more sedate than you’d expect a Luhrmann film to be - a point glossed over by some critics – as the pace slows considerably to concentrate on the drama.

"Complaining about a Baz Luhrmann film being over the top is akin to objecting to New Orleans during Mardi Gras season. Both are going to be extravagant, gaudy, raucous, big and bombastic. You get what you pay for." 

 

Luhrmann could never be characterised as a restrained director but in this case, he has reigned himself in, in part. In fact if you were expecting an entirely in-your-face Luhrmann experience you might ask for half the ticket price back.



All  that glitters....



I confess I’m not exactly a fan of Luhrmann’s films – I found Moulin Rouge and Australia too excessive (I’m the pot calling the kettle black here I know) and the latter laughably cringe-worthy. Conversely, Luhrmann’s hugely creative approach to bring Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet alive for a new generation was I thought, inspired.

And that approach is undoubtedly his aim in this adaptation of the American literary classic - to shake the story up in a big way, backed by a characteristically modern soundtrack. And this Gatsby if nothing else is far more involving that the most recent adaptation of the novel – 1974’s fairly dull sudser starring Robert Redford and Mia Farrow. Luhrmann’s version featuring a charismatic performance from Leonardo DiCaprio as Gatsby, not surprisingly makes its predecessor look positively dead on arrival.



Kiss me you fool



I didn’t have a problem with Luhrmann’s over-the-top approach to Jay Gatsby’s opulence because in this case it’s fitting for the story (after all, isn’t that what opulence is?). The parties, the excess, the hedonism and the larger-than-life depiction of all are a kind of thinly veiled allegory for Jay Gatsby himself. He’s a man who isn’t what he seems, his opulence simply a facade masking grand delusions of a truly happy, contented life.

The theme of longings manufactured, experienced and ultimately dashed is one that runs through the story; our narrator Nick Carraway (Tobey Maguire, Spiderman) gets a taste of high society but he’ll never belong to it. His cousin Daisy (Carey Mulligan, Never Let Me Go) finds that love proves a tragically pragmatic notion and all the money and hopefulness in the world can never buy Gatsby what he so desires, to have Daisy by his side.



King of the world!



Purists of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel will no doubt object to Luhrmann’s creative licence – the 3D friendly camera swoops, the Jay Z-centric soundtrack for example – but again, they’re points that seem moot in light of Luhrmann’s track record.

While some of the cast’s performances are laid on with a larger-than-life brush, others are nonetheless impressively nuanced; standouts for me were Mulligan, Joel Edgerton (Zero Dark Thirty) as Daisy’s brutish, womanising husband Tom and Elizabeth Debicki (A Few Best Men) reminiscent of a young Cate Blanchett as their sporting socialite friend Jordan Baker.

Yes, at almost two and a half hours this Gatsby is much too long but an epic running time is also a Luhrmann trait. Like I said, you get what you pay for.

TV Review: The Tree

When the bough breaks

Sat, June 1. SBS 9.30pm (AEST)

What’s it all about? A young girl believes her late father talks to her through the branches of a giant tree.

The Verdict: Despite an unusual premise, The Tree is thoughtful, quite magical and charming.

4.0/5.0 from me, Margaret.

This charming if unusual Australian French co-production is another in Australia’s cannon of films depicting grief.

Yet, adapted from the novel Our Father Who Art in the Tree by Judy Pascoe, it’s just as much about life, filled with both sunny and somber moments.

After the sudden death of her husband Peter (Aden Young, Mao’s Last Dancer) Dawn (French import Charlotte Gainsbourg, Antichrist) is immobilised by grief, struggling to care for her four children including the wise-beyond-her-years Simone (Morgana Davies, The Hunter).

"A ruminative, universal exploration of grief and the life force that can flow from it."

Inside their rural Queensland house time stands still as domestic mess accrues and flowers of sympathy whither. But outside, something mystical is at play. Simone believes her father watches over them,  that she can hear him whispering through the branches of a giant Moreton Bay Fig tree.

 

I hear dead people



But Dawn is unsure what to believe. Slowly emerging from her cocoon of grief, she begins a romance with local plumber George (Marton Csokas, The Debt) much to the indignation of Simone and the tree simultaneously flourishes, its roots and branches pervading the house.

No doubt a challenge for The Tree’s makers is how to have the audience suspend disbelief and engage with this eponymous, quaint centerpiece of the story as a nurturing if invasive force of nature, a conduit for healing and change. The production’s attention to detail helps no end; from the evocative sound design of screeching inhabitant bats to the luminous cinematography of bull ants scampering up the tree’s branches, amongst the rustic country of Boonah, Queensland.

That’s matched by uniformly impressive performances. Davies is the beating heart of the film, a natural performer (she was only seven at the time of filming) with a wealth of spirit. Gainsbourg is emotionally affecting while Young is a warm presence in his small but crucial role.

Dawn of the dead

French writer/director Julie Bertuccelli (Since Otar Left) unquestionably brings an intimate understanding of grief and single motherhood having lost her husband in 2006. But as she says, The Tree becomes more about living than death. It contrasts Dawn’s initial stricken state with the determined positivity of Simone.  “You have a choice to be happy or sad,” Simone says. “And I chose to be happy.”

There is an earthy sense of humour too amongst the sadness and charming  moments of childhood joy; from riding in the back of a ute wind blowing in hair  to sucking on ice blocks on a sticky day.

The Tree is a ponderous film and may not be to everyone’s taste but it avoids the ‘kitchen sink drama’ tag through its original premise. It’s a ruminative, universal exploration of grief and the life force that can flow from it.

Quite literally, life taking over.

First published on Trespass Magazine, September 2010.

Movie News: The Great Gatsby

Success is sweet revenge for Baz



Baz mimes his desire to put the critics' cajones in a vice 

If success is the best revenge then Baz Luhrmann’s is proving particularly sweet.

Despite some scathing reviews, his adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby has well exceeded expectations raking it in at the international box office; it’s already made $130 million of its $180 million budget back since its release, first in the US on May 10 and has given the likes of Star Trek: Into Darkness and Iron Man 3 some stiff competition.

Who’d have thought a lavish 3D adaptation of an American literary classic could do that hey Baz?

"We’ve got a bona fide literary blockbuster on our hands," Luhrmann told news.com.au today with good reason to crow after the cutting critiques.

"When does that happen?

“It ain't over till it's over, but the numbers are way above expectations."

"It was an extraordinarily big gamble.”

News.com.au reports that Gatsby is Lurhmann’s most successful film released in the US to date having taken $90 million already – Moulin Rouge is his second, it made $57 million stateside.

"I could not be happier......No one saw it coming. Everyone said we were dead. Everyone said we would flop."

In Cannes where Gatsby opened the world's premier film festival in the coveted opening slot last week, Luhrmann took a pragmatic approach to the vicious criticism his films attract.

"The critical fallout is pretty much identical for all my films," he told The Guardian. "It's not just mild disappointment. It's like I've committed a violent, heinous crime against a personal family member."



Lurhmann with his Gatsby cast on the Croisette in Cannes

 And he revealed to The Sydney Morning Herald that the barbs and arrows do hurt when you’re taking a massive gamble like Gatsby.

"I worried for the life of the film," Lurhmann said. "It's like having a child go off to school and the kids are beating them up.

"I feel very responsible for leading everyone from our lead actors to every person in the crew and our financiers down a road and, when the reviews are negative, I worry for those who believed in the project.

"I don't want to see them derided or feel like they've backed the wrong horse."

"Did I worry about the reviews? Yes. Because I thought the child might be beaten to death before it got a chance even to get into the schoolyard."

As he prepares to walk the red carpet tomorrow night alongside stars Carey Mulligan and Tobey Maguire - Leonardo DiCaprio has pulled out, reportedly to party in Cannes - at Hoyts Entertainment Quarter in Sydney, just a stone’s through from Fox Studios where the film was shot, Lurhmann is clearly basking in proving the critics wrong.

"I could not be happier," he told the SMH. "No one saw it coming. Everyone said we were dead. Everyone said we would flop."

The Great Gatsby opens on May 30. Take a squiz at the trailer below featuring music from Beyonce and Florence Welch.

TV Review - House Husbands

Family drama uses the dark side

House Husbands, Sundays 8.30pm (AEST)

What’s it all about? The domestic ups and downs of a quartet of house husbands and their partners.

The Verdict: A predominately bright and breezy formula looks set for a shakeup as tragedy strikes. 3.5/5.0

Just when you think things are starting to feel a bit mundane for the House Husbands of suburban Melbourne - top loaders vs front loaders, petty male ego spats etc - the show’s writers throw an emotional grenade into the mix. The climax of last week’s episode, while a little clumsily handled was devastating none the less and marked an emotional depth for a show that sits closer to the bright-and-breezy end of the dramatic scale.

The boys are back

It’s been a mostly winning formula with a mix of contemporary domestic drama and lightheartedness – buoyed by cast standouts Rhys Muldoon and Julia Morris - if you can look past the cutesy kids and some over reliance on contrivance and happy endings.

That is, until now. As one of the house husbands faces unthinkable grief as series two hits the home stretch it’ll be interesting to see how the tragedy and comedy balances out. One thing’s a certainty; a box of tissues would best be kept handy.

Film News: The Great Gatsby Baz Luhrmann

Great Scott! Baz Luhrmann divides the

critics….. Again.

“You can’t repeat the past,” warned Nick Carraway in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel The Great Gatsby. Ah, yes you can Nick.

If there’s one guarantee when it comes to the films of Baz Luhrmann – from Romeo and Juliet to Moulin Rouge and Australia - it’s that they’ll be big, bombastic and spectacular and the critics’ knives will be out to slice and dice the result. There aren’t many directors quite so polarizing as our Baz.

And so history repeats itself with Luhrmann’s glitzy 3D adaptation of Gatsby opening this week stateside (and the coveted opener next week at Cannes Film Festival) and some cutting reviews – some wallowing in the vitriolic – preceding it. At issue once again is the director’s flamboyant, over the top approach (said to have cost $180 million) to the notoriously difficult to adapt story of the American dream in decline, love unquenched and dripping excess.

 “When it comes to Baz Luhrmann and his style, it’s hard not to have such a strong opinion…… He seems to freely embrace the fact that he’s a polarising director. Clearly he’s decided that this is his niche.”

Kenneth Turan of the LA Times writes that the film is Luhrmann’s “excuse to display his frantic, frenetic personal style. A filmmaker who has increasingly made a fetish of excess and a religion of artificiality, Luhrmann and his team pile on the spectacle and the glitter until we are gasping for air.”



On the set of The Great Gatsby



Salon.com brands this Gatsby “debauchery in Disneyland”, its critic Andrew O’Hehir suggesting it could “go down in history as a legendary flop.” Rolling Stone’s Peter Travers gives the film just one star lamenting a “crushing disappointment” that would have F. Scott Fitzgerald turning in his grave.

Chris Nashawaty of Entertainment Weekly labeled Luhrmann “the caffeinated conductor” lamenting a perceived preference for style over substance;

“He'd rather blast your retinas into sugar-shock submission.”

Meanwhile The New York Observer’s Rex Reed was baying for blood;

“You don’t realize just how much misguided damage can be done to a great novel until it is vaporized by a pretentious hack like boneheaded Australian director Baz Luhrmann,” he said.

And The New Yorker’s David Denby who describes Luhrmann’s Gatsby as “a flimsy phantasmagoria” wasn’t much kinder;

 “Luhrmann’s vulgarity is designed to win over the young audience, and it suggests that he’s less a filmmaker than a music-video director with endless resources and a stunning absence of taste,” he wrote.



Does style trump substance?



Speaking about the Luhrmann polarizing effect, The Week’s entertainment editor Scott Meslow told The Daily Beast;

 “When it comes to Baz Luhrmann and his style, it’s hard not to have such a strong opinion…… He seems to freely embrace the fact that he’s a polarising director. Clearly he’s decided that this is his niche.”

Back in 2008, when Luhrmann’s Australia was facing the wrath of the critics he was circumspect telling Reuters;

“When you do what I do, you expect to be covered in mud.”

But Luhrmann wasn’t about to take the barbs lying down either firing back at his critics.

"They hate me, and they think I'm the black hole of cinema,” he said. “They say, 'He shouldn't have made it, and he should die."'

TV Review: House of Cards

It’s good to be bad

What’s it all about? A political aspirant scorned plots his way to power on Capitol Hill.

The Verdict: A class act as self assured, knowing and provocative as its protagonist.

4.5/5.0

Kevin Spacey is no stranger to playing the bad boy but if in doubt of his Machiavellian credentials look no further than the opening of this intriguing political drama. Snuffing out an ailing dog’s life - unbeknownst to its owners - he looks into the camera and tells us that he’s a man willing to get blood on his hands, a man who’ll do the necessary when no one else will.

"Make no mistake, this is Spacey’s show. His cutthroat power broker is up there with some of Shakespeare’s most memorable villains."

 

Kevin Spacey gets his villain on

In House of Cards, Spacey is Frank Underwood, a “lowly” House Majority Whip in the US Congress with much greater aspirations especially after being sideswiped for the role of Secretary of State.

Like a wily predator he’ll get his revenge, striking when the time is right with acute precision. The character is based on Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Richard III so it’s no surprise that Frank is a master manipulator with no qualms about backstabbing, blackmailing or berating his way to the top. He’s arrogant, sardonic with a southern drawl and self assured. And he’s got quite the God complex.

Based on the 90’s British mini-series of the same name, this is a bracing introduction to what’s sure to be one of the best new shows of the year. We’re introduced at a good clip to the major players including Claire (Robin Wright) Frank’s chic wife and strident supporter in political ascendency; and young gun Washington reporter Zoe (Kate Mara, American Gothic) who secures a deal that will see her career trajectory tied to that of Frank’s.

The Ultimate Power Couple: Spacey and Wright

House of Cards is as self assured, knowing and provocative as its protagonist with classy direction from David Fincher (The Social Network) and a sharp script by writer Beau Willimon (The Ides of March) that’s much more accessible than the rapid-fire, sometimes smug dialogue of The West Wing. 

If there’s one element that takes some getting used to, it’s Frank’s “direct addresses” to the audience reminding us he’s the puppet master but it’s a play straight out of Shakespeare’s own playbook so here it’s fitting.

Spacey, who doubles as executive producer is formidable as is Wright.  But make no mistake, this is Spacey’s show. His cutthroat power broker is up there with some of Shakespeare’s most memorable villains. The Bard would be proud.

The first three episodes of House of Cards air May 7 on Showcase at 8.30pm. All 13 episodes of Series 1 are available on Foxtel Go and Foxtel On Demand.