Learning from History & "Turn: Washington's Spies" Review

Our nation’s obsession with character story lines has done more damage than existentialist dread which has likewise poisoned our values, while few and far between, held in the handful of great legends whose efforts to form sustainable futures failed to take proper roots. The American experience reduced to eating off the hands of a small group of insightful men and women who led us in their creative stances. The cult of personality really enveloped into a cult of ideas and drive for truth justice and tangible action hampered by a strangle hood of elitism from our inception. Thurgood Marshall walking into the supreme court to fight for civil rights with nothing but our constitution, Rosa Parks refusing to move out of that seat on a bus, Thomas Paine writing pamphlets that influenced the public, George Washington pleading with citizen militias not to rebel against taxes or for backpay and Ben Franklyn who penned a constitution copied by Madison. In order to tell these important stories authors must stick to historical details. The absence of which our culture has bastardized history lacking a focus on complex structures rooted in reason and accountability, instead we live in a society of headlines and character driven narratives. It’s not Trump’s personality or outlandish behavior that should be the story, but the viable consequences and there lack thereof most painfully evident as his myriad of crimes and misdemeanors go unlisted, much less persecuted. 

Aside from the despicable criminal acts against our innocent capitol police and the vile vandalism upon our sacred halls what courage and patriotism burned in the hearts of the mob who stormed the building on January 6th? Imagine if they had truth and facts on their side? Imagine if instead of believing the election was rigged, they demanded a list of progressive changes like banning fossil fuels or eliminating all money out of politics. Imagine demanding the Democrats overrule the parliamentarian and vote for a 15-dollar minimum wage; the only chance they may get to pass any meaningful legislation unless filibuster rules change, not that we as a people should in such a divided state. The idea of systematic change is absurd to us because since the dawning of time we have longed for a leader to guide us; someone we could trust would change all these things to bring justice upon us. We always need a character or better yet a group of characters to come together for our behalf. We can never have a complete democracy because people are too unwilling to read and learn in order to vote for change; bill by bill. We can never have a reasonable democratic republic because our politics are rooted in legal corruption. So how can we change this mentality? Perhaps art should slowly lead the way by making movies and series with complex situations and mountains of details to shift through and solve in order to create real change, to accomplish the goal of a theme worthy of changing hearts and minds, or motivating people like a spell or like Hitler’s Goebbels, who convinced people that a race of humans were so superior that all others should be murdered or otherwise excluded to make way for a promise land. For the January 6th mob its Trump, his cohorts and the right-wing fanatical media that enabled him that is the infallible answer to the promise land albeit expressed in a heap of distorted chaotic madness but neoliberal moderates in comparison continue to control the slim majority never for systemic change out of fear that too much prosperity and equality will threaten their elitism; fearing inclusionary zones and demonstrating masses that can become so empowered as to demand fairness. This similarly is at the root of the 40 percent or so that supported Trump; believing his constant stream of lies and shattering of norms, despite how irresponsible, was in effect an attack on the elitist structures they see raising their taxes and health care cost or God forbid taking their jobs. “Tear it down, no more bull”, they even put on a flag; “no more bs”. Any reasonable informed person knows you “cannot accept that there are, on every story, two equal and logical sides to an argument” (E. Murrow”) yet this is the belief structure the majority adhere to. That the “conservative” side right wing media or in politics, represent a set of ideals that are anti-elitist that serve their needs or what they falsely believe are their religious values. This is the dilemma that must be conquered from the mindset of America. Firstly, that this disgusting Trumpian stage of the republican party is a complete sham and the only way for them to understand this, is if their pundits and “leaders” are debated completely in front of their eyes. How can the major media accomplish this without engaging with these characters or at least constantly fact checking their lies and more importantly, why is this process of reeducation so alien to our thoughts? How can these people not suffer consequences for their lies and blatant corruption even when these consequences can be financial; embargoing the corporations that fund them? Perhaps it is because art at its very best has created polished symbols that fit neatly with a simple storyline that can be followed; not a mess of drawings poetically grasping for meaning and substance where ever it leads. Let the truth come out; however convoluted and ugly it is; embracing its details not for the beauty of a false realism but for an examination of a crime scene, as if studying the guts of a corpse blown to pieces. If art forgets its unsatiable thirst for structured story and unrealistic character development then we can start to understand the complexity of resolve and only then can the theme or the true substance of the topic be acted upon. Perhaps it’s at times as simple as asking, “how to?”. If I myself put together 50 characters and understand them each within the context of the greater purpose they serve, then I can learn what is needed to mimic the reality of what had occurred or what should occur in the case of fiction. Such is our current state of justice and the 2014-2017 AMC original series “Turn: Washington’s Spies” which you can stream on Netflix. We can never know how good a historical drama is if we don’t compare it to the true events and some films that have stuck to real information have proved it can be done marvelously. (“Tora, Tora, Tora”, Spielberg’s “Lincoln” (although more of Lincoln’s years should have been examined), “Shidler’s List”, “Apollo 13”, “The Assassination of Jesse James”, “All the Presidents Men”, “12 Years a Slave”, and “Spotlight” are all mostly historically accurate films that have a hold on reality and presents the complex actions and reasoning behind the theme or major point of the story. Turn, based on the book and research from Alexander Rose, is a series based on true events; leaving out several of the important characters involved in George Washington’s spy ring which successfully obtained British intelligence that helped us win the war and even infamously caught Benedict Arnold who had in fact defected due to financial betrayal; the Continental Congress for years not able to pay their debt to him for his service. Arnold’s corruption while not covering his expenses as a General also led to a court martial which helped prompt his treasonous defection. Politics, corruption, and massive injustice was well portrayed in the series from start to finish despite several fictional accounts that were added to the historical records but without the accuracy of who did what and when we lose valuable lessons from the greatest of men. One character in the series, Major Robert Rogers, a legendary frontiersman credited with creating ranger militia tactics, was thankfully added to the series fictitiously in order to establish an important theme throughout the show; the importance of honor even among enemies. While Rogers story is vital to an important theme it would have been better served with accurate references, perhaps even as a side story instead of enveloping him into the Culper Ring so closely. His story like that of Abraham Woodhull’s, a leader in the ring, likewise deserves to be understood wholly so we can accurately digest how such important tasks can be accomplished.  The mutual respect shared between the two sides of the American Revolution presents a practical dichotomy we have lost today in comparison thanks to the degradation of the republican party into a zeal and fervor based on misinformation fomented by corruption. American British Loyalists tolerated British oppression because young America of course was broke and could barely pay its troops. The spies which Turn focused on, the Culper Ring, never even asked for a salary or any rewards instead just insisting on getting recompensed for expenses. Many of the characters took on true events and actions that involved other real characters in an effort to streamline the story with a smaller cast making for more drama and thrill to the detriment of understanding an important history.  We are robbed of the merits of Austin Roe, who had been a faithful courier of the ring as well as that of a shop owner and loyalist newspaper publisher, James Rivington. Interestingly enough the series makes Rivington’s tale a redemption of sorts while he had actually been a main part of the Culper Ring of spies in real life. This cinematic crime actually produced one of the most powerfully dramatic and poignant scenes in the series, during the last episode when Washington Pays him a visit. During the scene Washington, played with extreme depth and care by Ian Kahn, implores Rivington to change the name of his Royal Gazette and return to objective truth-seeking journalism after scolding him for tarnishing his wife and the rebellion for a few years. In perhaps the best scene in the series Rivington, played intensely by John Carroll Lynch, tears up having perhaps realized how wrong he was to have doubted the democratic intensions of the founding fathers wish for a free press because of how the “Sons of Liberty” treated his paper for publishing loyalist arguments. The sentiment was striking and important to absorb on its own merits despite being a fabrication. Likewise, the final episodes narrations of the main character and main civilian spy historically Abraham Woodhull, adequately portrayed by Jamie Bell lays out an awe-inspiring prose detailing the fate of the characters and how their honor and value as human beings was our true substance at our founding. While that touching compelling epilogue makes watching the 40 episodes worth the watch alone, one can’t help but wonder how much more actionable and redemptive if the scripts would have stuck only to the truth and brought out those poetic conclusions playing on the actions instead of catering to transmutable theatrics storyline and false character narratives. Regardless, our justice system and the laws they are based on are not meant to serve sound bites or monologues no matter how eloquent and palatable they may be. We will continue to be void of the honor found in such great Americans as Benjamin Franklyn, Thomas Paine, ( both sadly absent from the series) as well as head of intelligence Captain Benjamin Tallmadge, Woodhull, and Caleb Brewster intensely and delightfully played by Daniel Henshall as the Lieutenant with true grit to boot; without the constructs to enable them. We fail these men and the brave women who were also part of the Culper ring today by not following the dictates of justice. 

Whatever wrong has been committed must be listed and litigated just as any grievances must be expressed but let us keep in mind that such insurrected mob scene riots that forever tainted our nation on February 6th, should be reconciled as so implored by George Washington in 1783 when faced by a petitioned threat by his soldiers who had not gotten paid. “in the name of our common Country--as you value your own sacred honor—as you respect the rights of humanity, & as you regard the Military & national character of America, to express your utmost horror & detestation of the Man who wishes, under any specious pretences, to overturn the liberties of our Country, & who wickedly attempts to open the flood Gates of Civil discord, & deluge our rising Empire in Blood.” It’s time we stand down from enabled irrational mob mentality and rise up for our common goals both in art and in how we approach government.