Everyone suspects that Vladimir Putin is responsible for the murder of Boris Nemtsov, who was about to publish evidence of Russia’s involvement in Ukraine’s separatist conflict. This was not the first time something like this happened. There was the case of Alexander Litvinenko, who was murdered by means of radiation poisoning for publishing books about Putin’s use of the Russian secret police to seize power. And there have been others who have met with death for crossing Putin. Much of this is reminiscent of House of Cards, in which House majority whip, Frank Underwood, murders a congressman and a reporter in cold blood to hold on to power and eventually become President of the United States.
Now, we already know that art reflects life and life reflects art, so there is nothing really new about that. Furthermore, we know that one of the things we enjoy about movies and television dramas is that they allow us to have fantasies without consequences. In a disaster movie, we can experience the thrill of being in an earthquake or hurricane with no risk of injury or death. In a domestic melodrama, we can experience the sin of adultery while remaining faithful to our spouse. And, of course, we can enjoy the fun of committing a cold-blooded murder by identifying with a psychopath, and delight in the fear that our cinematic avatar might get caught. So, there is no mystery that we would be horrified by the people Putin has had murdered, while looking forward to Frank Underwood’s next evil deed.
Of course, another difference is that Frank Underwood is President of the United States, while Vladimir Putin is President of Russia. But suppose Vladimir Putin were just the fictional character of a television series about a man who became President of Russia. How would we react to a show like that?
Putin presumably had his killings done, but in the fictional version, we would see him committing the murders himself, slipping the polonium into the soup, shooting the political rival right in front of the Kremlin, and the like. And then this fictional Putin would turn to us in the audience and enunciate some clever epigram on the will to power, accompanied by a smirk of amusement. Would we enjoy such a show as much as we do House of Cards?
I realize I am asking a lot of the imagination. We not only have to imagine this fictional show set in Russia, but also imagine that the actual Russian murders never really happened. Or do we? The show Law and Order used to advertise that its stories were ripped from the headlines, but the fact that all those grisly crimes had actually occurred never stopped us from enjoying the fictional stories based on them. The fact that real serial killers exist does not spoil our fun in watching a movie about a fictional serial killer. Therefore, there is no reason to suppose that the reality of Putin’s murders would spoil our enjoyment of a fictional television show of a Russian version of Frank Underwood. And yet, there will never be such a show. We can enjoy a television series about an American politician who commits horrible crimes for his own aggrandizement, undermining our democratic form of government, but we would shrink from seeing a similar show set in Russia.
I have a friend who does not like House of Cards, because he does not like actors to break the fourth wall by looking at the audience and talking to them. He says it interferes with the sense of realism. When he first mentioned this, I simply accepted his criticism as a matter of taste on his part. But now I realize that this style is indispensable. We need Frank Underwood to talk to us directly so that the show will not be experienced as being realistic, but just for fun. Take away Underwood’s remarks to the audience, giving it a realistic style, and the show would be regarded by many as an outrage. Conversely, we would not want a Putin-like character to do what Underwood does, because we want to be outraged by such events over there. If ever there is a movie or television series featuring a Putin-like character dealing out death in his rise to power in Russia, the style will be realistic and grim, with none of that Frank Underwood touch of turning to the audience to let them in on the fun.