If we're going with the assumption that the format is made to cater to specific audiences, it's a little too convenient to see Paul and Kate have it out on a Wednesday, during couples-therapy night.
The opening of this episode has Amy smoking on the stoop - poisoning the unborn. Then we see Jake sexually excited by this sabotage. During the session, they're getting along fine - as long as Amy is continuing to sabotage her life - both her health and her profession - by pretending to be fine with the baby.
Then we see Amy's miscarriage. At the moment she's forced to look at the contradictions within herself, the pain she was feeling earlier manifests itself and rejects the fetus. And then they rush out and Paul needs Kate - his protective wall - to come in and scrub away the pain.
It seems clear that Kate and Paul lost a child somewhere along the line, right? Could that be what all the stacked photography books are about? Sophie noticed them in week one. I may be wrong, but it seems there's been some kid's name mentioned beyond the two we keep hearing about.
Showing posts with label Gabriel Byrne. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gabriel Byrne. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Sunday, February 3, 2008
In Treatment - Watch Online
In Treatment is a new show that launched this week on HBO. I'm really into the format - there are episodes every day where Paul sees different patients. Then on Friday, we'll see his own session with his therapist, Gina (Dianne Wiest). Produced by M&M (marky-mark?) Wahlberg, it's an American version of an Israeli show (Think of pitch people saying 'Well, The Office crossed the Atlantic just fine...).
Each episode uses a single session as it's narrative structure. It's like the ultimate psycho-drama. Character-arc is everything here and it works because the writing is tight and the acting is great. Gabriel Byrne, in particular, is a totally convincing therapist. Not only that, but he's a good therapist - he's making the connections for his patients and helping them uncover them for themselves whenever possible.
The first week had a few first visits and just one long-time customer (Laura). You get the raw feeling of a duel from a few of the sessions which feels authentic. Everyone approaches him with so many defenses (or by going on the offensive). In the end, when he sits down with Gina, he gives what he gets. They do such a good job of showing how engaging with the process of therapy is engaging the therapist.
Maybe the fun here is the fact that we get to play both shrink and patient. We're getting Paul's help but we're also yelling at the screen like "don't go up the stairs" when we see something before he does. Then on Friday there's the big reveal of what he thinks.
While they're not archetypes, each of the four patients is likely to appeal to different audiences to varying degrees. I wonder if different people will watch on different nights - or if HBO is trying to hit different demographics this way.
It could be vicarious therapy for people who can't/don't want to go to therapy themselves. They can pick their character and transfer the process of exploration onto themselves. But then, everyone should watch Friday's episode to see what Paul thinks of them.
Worth noting is that HBO has allowed us to watch the full streaming episodes for this first week online. (This is what execs would tell screen writers is a 'promotion'). I'm not sure if they'll keep that up, but I hope so. HBO's online viewer has no full-screen, but it's totally uninterupted by commercials.
Each episode uses a single session as it's narrative structure. It's like the ultimate psycho-drama. Character-arc is everything here and it works because the writing is tight and the acting is great. Gabriel Byrne, in particular, is a totally convincing therapist. Not only that, but he's a good therapist - he's making the connections for his patients and helping them uncover them for themselves whenever possible.
The first week had a few first visits and just one long-time customer (Laura). You get the raw feeling of a duel from a few of the sessions which feels authentic. Everyone approaches him with so many defenses (or by going on the offensive). In the end, when he sits down with Gina, he gives what he gets. They do such a good job of showing how engaging with the process of therapy is engaging the therapist.
Maybe the fun here is the fact that we get to play both shrink and patient. We're getting Paul's help but we're also yelling at the screen like "don't go up the stairs" when we see something before he does. Then on Friday there's the big reveal of what he thinks.
While they're not archetypes, each of the four patients is likely to appeal to different audiences to varying degrees. I wonder if different people will watch on different nights - or if HBO is trying to hit different demographics this way.
It could be vicarious therapy for people who can't/don't want to go to therapy themselves. They can pick their character and transfer the process of exploration onto themselves. But then, everyone should watch Friday's episode to see what Paul thinks of them.
Worth noting is that HBO has allowed us to watch the full streaming episodes for this first week online. (This is what execs would tell screen writers is a 'promotion'). I'm not sure if they'll keep that up, but I hope so. HBO's online viewer has no full-screen, but it's totally uninterupted by commercials.
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