Karl Puschmann: Can a conflicted serial killer kick the habit?

Steve Carell in The Patient. Photo / Suzanne Tenner

Sometimes in life, you experience problems you can't overcome by yourself. Big, small, in between, whatever, often we need a little outside help to get things back on track. I have a pal who quit smoking with the help of a hypnotherapist, another friend who sees a life coach and I have an app on my phone that tells me how far and for how long I should run to prevent turning into a potato.

As far as problems go, giving up the cigs, having confidence in one's decision-making and getting off your arse are huge to each of us but, in the grand scheme of things, are relatively minor.

So imagine for a second that you were a guilt-ridden serial killer who really wanted to stop serially killing but felt powerless against an inner compulsion and maddening drive to continue serial killing. How do you get help for that?

First, you'd probably want to try therapy. That's the option Sam, the conflicted serial killer in the psychological thriller The Patient takes. But even with patient/doctor confidentiality, committing a series of gruesome murders ain't exactly the kind of thing you'd want to open up about.

After inventing an identity and then obfuscating details of his life in order to work through his unique problem with his therapist he comes to the frustrating conclusion that it's not working. Committed to getting better, he hatches plan b.

This involves kidnapping his therapist, chaining him to a bed that's set up in the basement of his mother's house, which is where Sam also lives, and continuing his therapy without disguise or deception, albeit with the addition of a major felony.

This is the intriguing premise that powers this 10-part limited series which is currently streaming on the Star hub on Disney+. It's an entertaining psychological thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat while also respecting your time.

Comedic actor Steve Carrell gets serious as Alan, the therapist who has spent the majority of the past five episodes chained to the bed. While he's been dipping into dramatic roles for a while now, he is superbly suited to his part in The Patient. Here he exudes the calm and warm, yet slightly detached, demeanour of a professional therapist while also having the chops for moments of aggression or fear as required.

Likewise, Domhnall Gleeson, who you may recognise from Harry Potter franchise but I recognised from the recent live-action, surprisingly funny Peter Rabbit films, is great as the deranged serial killer Sam, switching from matter-of-fact, if awkward, pleasantries to violent and murderous outbursts that demonstrate his inner turmoil.

And that's about all there is to the series. Set almost entirely in Sam's basement prison, the two characters talk, then Sam goes to work, then he comes home and they talk some more. The next day they talk. Sam goes to work and then comes home, only this time he's with a tied up, blindfolded and knocked out man that he really, really wants to murder but is trying not to, due to a minor breakthrough at an earlier session.

While Alan is desperately trying to get inside the mind of the killer, to save both himself and the new captor, he's also working through the grief of losing his wife to cancer and coming to terms with the rift that opened up between their son and her before she died.

At the midway point of the series, I'm thoroughly committed to seeing how this all turns out. An easy choice considering how compelling it is, but also by the fact that it's not messing me about. Episodes are just over 20 minutes each and even manage to cram in flashbacks alongside the tension and terrible situations of the present day.

Even within the restrictions of what is almost a two-person play, The Patient pulls off unexpected twists and turns to keep you gripped. With the calibre of its stars and its high production values, the series is obviously a premium offering. But, and this is the best thing I like, it doesn't act like it. It's a champagne show made for beer tastes.

What I mean by this is that most premium shows these days are long, drawn-out affairs. Either unsolvable mystery boxes that pile mystery after mystery on top of each other with no thought for providing a satisfactory answer, stretched-out dramas that drag on and on over long episodes and multiple seasons, or expensive special effects extravaganzas that offer many chances to check your phone during their hour-long running time and think that snarling mythical beasts are enough to keep you coming back.

The Patient, on the other hand, shows how good TV can be with as little as two people, an almost empty room and some chain.