“The Patient” starring Steve Carell and Domhnall Gleeson / Z-View

The Patient (2o22)

Directors:  Chris Long (episodes 1,2, 8-10); Kevin Bray (episodes 3-5); Gwyneth Horder-Payton (episodes 6,7)

Teleplay:  Joel Fields & Joe Weisberg

Stars:  Steve Carell, Domhnall Gleeson, Laura Niemi and David Alan Grier.

Tagline:  None.

The Plot…

Dr. Alan Strauss (Carroll) is a psychotherapist who one morning wakes up in the basement of a strange house.  A chain is padlocked to his leg and a bolt in the cement floor.  Dr. Strauss soon learns that his captor is Sam Fortner (Gleeson).  Fortner is a serial killer who believes that Dr. Strauss can cure him of the compulsion to kill.

Thoughts (Beware of spoilers)…

What a great setup for a limited series.  If Strauss cures Fortner, Strauss is a liability because of his knowledge of the murders.  If Strauss can’t cure Fortner, there’s no reason to keep him alive.  It’s a game of cat and mouse and the stakes couldn’t be higher.

I was a little hesitant that Steve Carroll was the dramatic lead because of his role as Michael Scott from The Office.  I shouldn’t have worried.  Carroll was excellent, as is Laura Niemi who plays Sam’s mother.  She’s aware that her son is a serial killer, but cannot bring herself to turn him in.  David Alan Grier (another comedian) shows his dramatic chops.

The real surprise to me was Domhnall Gleeson.  What a performance!  Definitely worthy of an Emmy.  While I had seen Gleeson in a few films (True Grit, Dredd and The Revenant), I had no idea of how good an actor he is.

I liked that The Patient was written as series of ten episodes.  Because it was a limited series all bets were off as to who would live or die.  Expect some surprises along the way.

The Patient earns 5 of 5 stars.