today's installment, we'll cover In Treatment.
HBO has a fine quality to their dramas, they manage to lure you in and keep you hooked with the more average-life qualities and somehow creating some compelling dramas with them. I'm thinking primarily of Six Feet Under, here. Not everyone can find a show about a family running a funeral home 'exciting' but yet it's utterly entrancing, to this writer.
"In Treatment" is another fine example. Gabriel Byrne (probably best known for Usual Suspects) stars as a therapist, Paul Weston, and the weekly installments have a fun little twist; each episode is only about twenty minutes to half-an-hour long. they cover the various patients he has on a weekly basis, and his interactions with them. So, while you've got forty episodes on your hands, in reality you're only watching about eight weeks of therapy, intensely personal, with five different clients.
one season in, I've discovered that this may be one of Byrne's best performances ever. Watching Paul's weekly sessions has been fascinating--in addition to treating (and often struggling with) the various clients, he must struggle with a teenage daughter, a rough relationship with his wife; and, come the end of the week, he seeks his own therapy with a former friend. it is this session of the week where we truly learn the most about Paul, for his true colors and his inner thoughts come barging out.
watching a man on the brink of emotions finally break the levee is both relieving and compelling... he holds so much in -- and has to, in order to remain impassive and conducive to his various clients. But at the same time, parts of his life are falling apart and he is fighting to keep control. It's what makes the show so much fun to watch- the dichotomy of his calm control in-session and the release of the tension we're all watching (and sometimes sharing) come friday's episode, his session with Gina (played wonderfully by Dianne Wiest).
I won't let the season's tribulations be spoiled, but suffice it to say that as I start season two, we are now placed with a full new roster of clients, a change of location, and new struggles. the writers waste no time in compounding the pressures that Paul faces in his ongoing struggle to keep the mask on during his sessions.
I love that the camera angles and the direction are very simple, and therefore extremely effective. With each client/session getting their own episode, you get a sense of isolation, much as Paul must compartmentalize each client in order to bring his best to help these people in their own ways; whether it's a marriage in trouble, a young child forced into maturity and rough adult circumstances, a client in love with him, or a brassy fighter pilot who refuses to actually listen to the advice Paul is trying to offer him. I have watched my first week's sessions of season two and I cannot see myself tossing this series away anytime soon, as these new faces bring very different and very relatable, human, realistic challenges to the couch.
Byrne himself brings a soothing nature to the role of Paul, a man who can be smoldering with pain at a patient's suffering, or slip quietly into the mask of control as he does his best to let the patient find their own answers. he lulls you into his inner turmoil almost without you noticing it. there are many shots of his impassive face, and you squint at his rock-stoic features trying to read the reaction behind the intensity of his eyes. it's hard not to start questioning your own circumstances, and have sympathy for Paul or his varied patients. The show's so good at bringing out the heart of the matter, patiently as paul is with each client, and you begin to see the cause/effect of each scenario as clear as day with their reactions. Reading people is not always an easy talent, and as a curious fellow myself i deeply enjoy watching the different gears click into place as we learn what makes each character (including Paul and his family) tick.
the writers (also known for writing and directing things like Six Feet Under, Carnivale, and the German version of In Treatment that came first)have done a wonderful job of giving us a slice-of-life world that probably exists as we speak; You may not be a late-fortys male but you can understand the pain and frustrations we see Paul working through as the season continues;
the environment of his 'office' is another important character; his bookshelves, the well-worn couch, the open and spacious nature allows for the clients to feel relaxed, comfortable while Byrne knows the room inside and out and can use the room as a tool also, to help the patients discover the answers they seek. Something about it reminds me of my grandfather's living room, which might be why I myself can so strongly connect to this inanimate character of the show.
It is in its third season on HBO and as I catch up I feel like Paul will become one of those characters that is an old friend before very long--you want to keep tabs on him, ask how he's doing.
I do not know what the rest of season two, or the future seasons, will bring me, but i do know this; i will be coming back week after week for the catharsis that Gabriel Byrne's fine acting evokes.
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