Sometimes, when I look at the rapid devolution of democracy in the United States, I wonder if perhaps I am lying in a coma somewhere, and this is just some elaborate fever dream. A related thought is that if all of this were a movie treatment, it would likely never be produced, given the absurdity of the plot.
In the land of so-called make-believe, both novels and cinema have warned us of dystopian futures, sparked by the rise of a 'man of the people.' There was a 1957 film called A Face in The Crowd, about the meteoric rise of Larry Rhodes, featuring the against-type casting of Andy Griffiths as a demagogue. His character is ultimately brought back down to earth by a "hot-mic."
In a similar vein, but even more menacing, was Stephen King's The Dead Zone, later made into a movie starring Christopher Walken and Martin Sheen.
One cannot watch either of these films without thinking of Donald Trump.
My friend Gary sent me this last evening.
Both of these movies have what might be described as happy endings. While the signs are not good, it remains to be seen whether life will ultimately imitate art in contemporary Amerika.
