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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Witty and Wicked, July 20, 1999
Ian Richardson returns as the ruthless yet compelling Francis Urquhart, a fictional albeit realistic (and relevant) Prime Minister of England. In this episode, Urquhart finds himself in a royal battle with a newly appointed King. The King (portrayed with finesse by actor Michael Kitchen) launches an assault on Urquhart's "hard line" policies and enlists the aid of Urquhart's political enemies to gather against him. Adding to the balance of forces is Mrs. Sarah Harding (played by Kitty Aldrige), a young and attractive media pollster who becomes Urquhart's "personal political consultant" and, eventually, his mistress. Sarah soon uncovers incriminating information that can destroy Urquhart. Will she use it against him? Or will she end up like Mattie Storin, Urquhart's previous mistress who died under mysterious circumstances?
Giving the entire episode a strong allusion to 'Macbeth' is Urquhart's occasional remorse for the brutality of his past, and the brutality he must inflict to gain/hold power. Speaking directly to the camera (and us, the viewer), he provides insight into his cunning yet tortured thought process. Diane Fletcher's role as Urquhart's wife, Elizabeth, completes the 'Macbeth' allusion. Elizabeth exhibits a Lady Macbeth ruthlessness that matches Urquhart's ambitions. Of the King, she tells her husband, "Bring him down, Francis. Make him fall."
But can Urquhart really bring down a king? Find out and be entertained along the way.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Absolutely Brilliant, September 3, 2006
This review is from: House of Cards Trilogy, Vol. 2 - To Play the King (DVD)
This is the best of the three- the first two are great, the third is to be missed. The viewer is drawn into the villainy of an evil PM with Shakespeareian ease and expertise. I disagree with a comment of a prior reviewer that there is "no redeeming social value." In fact, the point - power corrupts, often irredeemably so- is probably too obvious to mention. Any failure of the subplots to tie together completely at the end is far outweighed by the brilliantly protrayed spectacle of evil.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Top-Notch Acting, A Must See Production, July 27, 2001
This is the second part of the "House of Cards" trilogy by Michael Dobbs and the continuing story of Francis Urquhart who, now Prime Minister, is engaged in a political struggle with the newly crowned king, a thinly disguised version of Prince Charles, and in a romantic liaison with a woman whom his wife chose for him and who is almost his equal in cold-bloodedness though not in utter and absolute villainy. In this second work we are no longer taken in by the superficial charm of Urquhart. His cleverness has given way to brutality, rage and deceit, and he has lost our sympathy. We look with a certain coldness even on his moments of remorse and hauntings of conscience. He begins, for all his political triumphs, to show his essential weakness, and his wife is now emerging as the strength of their partnership. The work is well worth seeing despite some weakness of plot and is fascinating because of the unusual conflict between HRH and the PM though most of all because of the continued stupendous acting of Ian Richardson. It is, however, not quite up to the same level as "House of Cards," the first part of the trilogy.
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