X
- HBO
- May 23, 2021
- HBO
- May 23, 2021
Summary Paul, a psychotherapist played by Gabriel Byrne, is the picture of insightful perfection when dealing with his patients, but he becomes a raging ball of issues during his own therapy sessions. In Treatment is based on a successful Israeli television series and is produced by HBO, Closest to the Hole Productions and Leverage Management...
- HBO
- May 23, 2021
- HBO
- May 23, 2021
Summary Paul, a psychotherapist played by Gabriel Byrne, is the picture of insightful perfection when dealing with his patients, but he becomes a raging ball of issues during his own therapy sessions. In Treatment is based on a successful Israeli television series and is produced by HBO, Closest to the Hole Productions and Leverage Management...
Where to Watch
Season Episodes
View All Seasons
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 22 Critic Reviews
72
82% Positive
18 Reviews
18 Reviews
18% Mixed
4 Reviews
4 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 22 Critic Reviews
72
82% Positive
18 Reviews
18 Reviews
18% Mixed
4 Reviews
4 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
The clear standout for me was Ramos and the Eladio story, which has the perfect In Treatment combination of centerpiece performance, deliberately presented character arc and reactive material for the therapist. ... Moments of distraction were limited, the result of great actors being steered through emotionally wide-ranging writing by directors — Michelle MacLaren and then Julian Farino — who keep the show from ever feeling stage-bound. This is a show meant to feel of-the-moment to any moment it’s in.
User Score
Generally Unfavorable
Based on 12 User Ratings
3.8
33% Positive
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
0% Mixed
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
67% Negative
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
User Score
Generally Unfavorable
Based on 12 User Ratings
3.8
33% Positive
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
0% Mixed
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
67% Negative
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
Beyond disappointing. I'm frankly tired of the word and concept 'woke'. It's ubiquitous in todays society, and complaining about it (and catering to it) only propagates the unending cycle. There actually is such a thing as "too much awareness". For example, If you are aware of every sensation of every nerve ending while you cross a cross-walk, you are likely to have a relatively awkward walk, since you are hyperaware. If you are in "auto-mode", it is organic and fluid. There is not even a hint of organic fluidity in this very scripted show.
Obviously, the first 3 seasons were scripted as well. But it had depth. You could get lost in the characters, and their psyches would surprise you. This new iteration has no such depth, and it makes up for it with patronization and pandering. I had my preferred characters in the Byrne originals, but I can honestly say I didn't palpably dislike any of them. This is inverted regarding this new edition, and I struggle to tolerate almost every figure throughout. Exploring therapy can often uncomfortable, but not for reasons of anti-charisma.
So, what's good about it? Well, pretty much only Uzo Aduba. She's a damn fine actress, and she portrays the right amount of warmth and adamancy to be effective. Honestly, the restrictive parameters of her character only highlights her acting skills. The other cast has their moments, but are overshadowed by transparent and unengaging emotions, as well as outlandish theatricality.
Also, the camera framing. These details are likely to go consciously unnoticed, but is a more important element than one may think. For example, during webcams sessions, framing those shots is harder than meets the eye.
That's kind of all I can think of for the pros of this show. The best thing I can say about it, is that it is making me want to re-explore the first three seasons
Report
SEASON 4
Pretty awful.
The original show (which had characters of all races, genders, and sexual orientation) was pretty good. But it ended over 10 years ago.
This new iteration is so woke it's unwatchable. The patients are either so entitled and delusional they are really crazy or whether they are supposed to be clever and pained. The worst character is the daughter of a car dealer who wrecks Bentleys and has fantasies about killing mythical white racists.
Report
SEASON 4
“In Treatment,” in its fourth season (its first since 2010), does not hit the heights of insight into human nature for which it aims; it does not justify airing four episodes a week. But it makes the case for its own existence thanks in substantial part to the performance of Aduba. ... Aduba makes “In Treatment” a success by force of will.
Each title character is scripted by a different writer, leading to some inconsistency in tone. But, as is true of previous seasons, the success of each plot really depends on how much you like the character.
The fourth season revival of In Treatment is beautifully appealing and inevitably a touch disappointing. Aduba is excellent as Brooke. ... The patients are great, too. Ramos is particularly remarkable as Eladio. ... The show’s structure says “chase me,” but it’d be a better story if the themes played harder to get.
All the talking can be a little tiresome for the viewer, too: the show is intense, and the endless conversation – without action – demands great attention. With weaker actors leading the tête-à-tête, I fear listening to these strangers’ problems might grow rather dull. Given the subject, In Treatment felt a little on the nose.
The show’s fourth season doesn’t offer us a salve for this phenomenon [how central therapy has become to our culture]; it, too, is more interested in the performance of therapy than the science of it.
I expected and invested so mucccchh on the return of this show but it was entirely baseless.
Report
SEASON 4
"Look at how they massacred my boy." - The Godfather, when watching season 4 of "In Treatment"
I gave season 4 of "In Treatment" a chance with the hope that Uzo Aduba is a talented enough actress to replace Gabriel Byrne in the lead role. Unfortunately, this "reimagined" version of the far superior original series is everything I feared it would be -- and somehow worse than I expected!
The main problem with the "In Treatment" Imposter is that the new therapist's conversations with her patients do not flow organically like they did in the original series. Seasons 1 through 3 worked so well because it never felt like I was watching a television series; I felt like I was IN the room with Paul and his patients. Moreover, Paul and his patients felt like real people with real problems and real flaws, not vehicles through which the writers used to advance their political agendas. This leads to my next complaint.
The writers use identity politics as a guise for compelling, interesting, and relatable characters. What I mean by that is Brooke's patients are not written to feel like real people, but rather personifications of systemic problems such as white privilege, ****, and racism. Colin's entire character can be boiled down to: "all white men are power-hungry, racist, and misogynistic." Laila's character can be boiled down to: "all black women are the victims of an inherently racist society."
One might argue that the original series experimented with identity politics. The patient, Jesse, from season 3 was vocal about the sexually irresponsible behaviors he engaged in with other men. But Jesse's sexual orientation was never the central focus of treatment. Instead, it was the dilemma that he faced between pursuing a relationship with his birth parents and distancing himself from his adoptive parents.
There are also creative decisions that make the "In Treatment" Imposter feel disconnected from the original three seasons. Every fourth episode, Brooke complains about her relationship problems with a close friend, Rita, a character that nobody cares about. Far more interesting was Paul's sessions with his own therapists, Gina and Adele, who increased his awareness of his maladaptive behavioral patterns that interfered in his clinical practice and personal life.
And what is up with the constant references to COVID, COVID, COVID? Why does this show have to go out of its way to remind us that we are in the midst **** pandemic, when that is all we have been hearing about for the past year and a half? I thought TV shows were supposed to help us forget about the real world.
Most egregious is that the "In Treatment" Imposter disrespects the legacy that the original series left behind. For reasons that I am sure will be explained later, Brooke ignores Paul Weston's phone calls and email correspondences. The only connection the "In Treatment" Imposter has to the first three seasons is a picture of Paul and Brooke, which implied that Paul was Brooke's mentor or close friend.
If you are going to watch "In Treatment," only watch seasons 1 through 3 and pretend that season 4 does not exist. It is not worth your time due to its poor execution of therapy sessions; heavy emphasis on woke identity politics; baffling creative decisions; and lack of respect for the original series.
Report
SEASON 4
