Sat. Oct 5th, 2024

New Netflix drama showcases talent from actors and writers

 The Politician stars two actors from the Broadway musical, Dear Evan Hansen. Photo credit: tvtropes.org

The Politician, Netflix’s newest original series, is sure to be an instant classic. 

Created by Ryan Murphy and Falchuk who also worked on Glee, American Horror Story, Scream Queens and Pose

The show has a star-studded cast including Ben Platt, Gwyneth Paltrow, Zoey Deutch and Jessica Lange. 

The show follows Payton Hobart, played by Platt, as he runs for class president. 

Scandals arise, loyalties are tested and enemies are made. 

Hobart must choose a running mate, run against a dear friend and discovers a secret that threatens his entire campaign. 

Hobart needs a sympathetic running mate to soften his cold behavior if he wants to win the election. 

Hobart finds Infinity Jackson, an optimistic girl at his school who has cancer. 

However, there’s a rumor running around school that could ruin Hobart’s entire plan. 

Infinity might not have cancer. 

The question is, does Hobart wish to live in blissful ignorance, and have deniability or find out the truth?

At the same time, Hobart is applying to Harvard. 

Harvard is his dream school because seven former presidents went there and Hobart aspires to be president. 

Unlike his siblings, Hobart won’t allow his parents buy way in. 

Hobart wishes to be accepted based on his own merits and being class president would only increase his chances. 

The acting in this series is superb. 

Platt can convey such incredible emotion through his character, having an emotional breakdown right before your very eyes. 

Paltrow plays a typical rich housewife, uninterested in her husband, and yet, there is a depth to her. 

She would do anything for her son, Hobart, putting her happiness aside for him. 

Paltrow can put incredible vulnerability behind mediocre lines. 

The cinematography is another excellent aspect of the show. 

It switches between multiple different styles. 

Quick, symmetrical shots that imitate a Wes Anderson movie. 

Or long shots that are so intensely choreographed they feel like a Broadway musical. 

Depending on the emotion of the scene it will switch to a different style to fit it, telling the audience indirectly that we’re moving to something else. 

The representation in the series is also something to marvel at. 

The principal is played by a deaf woman, there is a young man with cerebral palsy and multiple queer characters. 

One prominent person is Theo Germaine, the trans-non-binary actor who plays James, using he/they pronouns according to their Instagram. 

Though his gender identity is never addressed in the series, this is still a good thing. 

It shows our typical view of gender is old, and that this is normal and doesn’t need an entire episode to address and explain it. 

It simply is what it is.

Although cliff hangers have become a staple of TV series, 

The Politician answers the questions, the beginning of the show asked. 

Who ends up as Hobart’s running mate? 

Does Hobart win the election? 

Does Payton get into Havard? 

As well as where are more minor characters ended up. 

The last episode flashes forward three years, setting up the story for next season, where there is sure to be more drama, more scandal and a lot more politics.

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