With 'The Politician,' Ryan Murphy Plants His Flag in Netflix
some words on Ryan Murphy’s first Netflix show, the frustrating-to-not-great “The Politician.” Looking forward to Season 2!
After spending about 15 years with Fox, creating several hit series including "American Horror Story," "American Crime Story," "Pose" and more, writer-director-producer Ryan Murphy left the company in 2018 for a five-year mega deal with Netflix. The move came just before Disney bought Fox, which includes Murphy's FX and Fox network homes; a similar move to prolific TV creator Shonda Rhimes ("Grey's Anatomy," "How to Get Away with Murder"), who left ABC for Netflix in 2017.
Murphy's first of many projects for the streaming platform is "The Politician," which debuts its first eight-episode season Friday. The comedy follows an ambitious high school student from Santa Barbaria, Calif. who is determined to be elected as the school's student body president. Played by Tony-winner Ben Platt, Payton Hobart knows it's just a stepping stone in his grand plan in becoming the President of the United States. He's studied a number of modern presidents to find out what they've got in common and what they don't, creating an algorithm of sorts that will guarantee him a path right into the White House. According to his research, in order to become the Commander in Chief, he first needs to be elected president of his high school and then get into Harvard.
Murphy's projects can range from whacky camp ("Scream Queens") to sobering drama ("American Crime Story"). "The Politician" finds Murphy leaning more into the former, making his new comedy broad and uneven. An anecdotal notion about creators making shows or movies for Netflix is that the company gives them a lot more creative freedom than traditional studios and networks. But it always felt that Murphy more or less got to do what he wanted when it came to his FX projects, especially the bonkers "American Horror Story." (Let's never forget the drill-bit dildo monster!) In a lot of ways, unrestricted creative freedom and an uncompromised vision can be the best thing (see David Lynch's "Twin Peaks: The Return") but sometimes too much room in the sandbox can make a show or film unruly — yes, notes and edits can be a good thing!
For better and for worse, it's pretty clear Murphy had full say with "The Politician," which carries a number of his trademarks. It's proudly queer, has some unbelievable one-liners, features several traditionally hot white men, and looks exceptional. But it also has several of the Murphy trappings. Despite its marketing, "The Politician" is not a critique on modern politics or even a true satire as it's been called, but it is more a quirky teen dramedy that is debuting in the shadow of "Euphoria," a smarter and more evocative teen series.
Though Murphy wears many hats, his weakest skill is writing and for "The Politician" he gets a writing credit in several episodes. Still, Murphy's eye for casting has always been his best trait and that's no different here. He's once again assembled an all-star cast that not only includes big names but a handful of unknowns who break through here. Among the well-known stars is Murphy muse Jessica Lange, who worked with him on several seasons of "American Horror Story" and played Joan Crawford against Susan Sarandon's Bette Davis in his FX miniseries "Feud." In "The Politician," Lange plays a Blanche DuBois type named Dusty Jackson, grandmother to Infinity, played by Zoey Deutch, who has many ailments, including leukemia. Dusty is sassy, brassy and usually drunk, milking Infinity's illnesses to get free trips and charity from folks who feel bad for her. Deutch plays Infinity as incredibly saccharine with a squeaky voice — she loves Disney, her grandma and her dimwitted boyfriend Riccardo (Benjamin Barrett). Her sad story and bubbly personality draw Payton to her and he eventually taps Infinity as his running mate.
Then there's Gwyneth Paltrow, who plays Georgina Hobart, Payton's adoptive mother. It should be mentioned that the Hobart family is rich. Not just regular rich but uber-rich and in some ways Paltrow is playing a version of herself, or perhaps the Goop version the public sees her as. Except she's given an opportunity to shed that aloof image, playing Georgina as warm, thoughtful and empathetic. For all of the shortcomings "The Politician" has, Paltrow is wonderful in the comedy; perhaps her best performance in a decade. If Reese Witherspoon channeled her Tracey Flick character for "Big Little Lies" Paltrow is doing the same here, drawing influence from her role as Margot Tenenbaum in Wes Anderson's 2001 comedy "The Royal Tenenbaums." Georgina is also witty and her dialogue is often written in a way that winks at Anderson's precious and dry sense of humor.
Of course, there's the titular politician himself, Platt, who plays Payton as a clean-cut and determined teen who will literally stop at nothing to achieve his goals. He's so deadest on becoming president that it scares those around him, including his devoted mother. Platt is good in the role, as are his campaign "staffers" James (Theo Germaine) and McAfee (Laura Dreyfuss) and his girlfriend Alice (Julia Schlaepfer). Running against him is River Barkley (David Corenswet), a stunningly handsome and intelligent student who was once Payton's Chinese tutor. He doesn't really want to run for high school president but is put up to it by his manipulative girlfriend, ice queen Astrid (Lucy Boynton). They strategically tap Skye, a black and queer student played by a wonderful newcomer Rahne Jones, before something seismic happens that changes the landscape of the presidential election. That won't be spoiled here.
Despite good performances across the board (it should be noted that Dylan McDermott and January Jones play Astrid's parents and are good but severely underused), "The Politician" is another misstep in Murphy's long and prolific career. It often leans into his worst tendencies; over-the-top plots are punctuated by unnecessary OMG twists. The comedy does see a few hopeful moments that are smart and engaging, most notably the 28-minute fifth episode "The Voter," which is one of the few times where "The Politician" actually has something to say about our current political climate. It follows an innocuous, disinterested and unengaged student who is more concerned about masturbating than he is about casting his vote for the next student body president. But if you're looking for a political satire from Murphy, you'd be better off watching his 2016 presidential election nightmare "American Horror Story: Cult."
"The Politician" finally finds its footing by the end of Season 1, which basically plays out like the first act of a really long film. The last episode sets up a truly interesting Season 2, taking unexpected chances with its story and its characters as well as finally dropping in Judith Light and Bette Midler. It's frustrating that it takes a full eight episodes for "The Politician" to get good but there's hope for its sophomore run to be exceptional. Unfortunately, in this crowded Peak TV landscape, that might not be enough for the show to get a vote of confidence from audiences.
