User reviews

My Review - The Shrink Next Door - My rating 8/10 I never thought I'd be so impressed with Will Ferrell in a dramatic role this series just proves to me not to judge any actor on one aspect of their career.

Will Ferrell has always seemed to me to be a one dimensional comedian and I have to admit I've found him irritating.

Not so anymore his role as the shy impressionable self deprecating Jewish businessman Marty Markowitz ripe for exploitation and manipulation by psychiatrist Ike played by Paul Rudd was a revelation to me.

If this was a movie instead of an 8 part television series both actors would be up for Academy Award consideration in my opinion.

The premise of the Shrink Next Door based on a podcast and TV series both based on the real life story of psychiatrist Isaac Herschkopf, who in 2021 was determined by New York's Department of Health to have violated "minimal acceptable standards of care in the psychotherapeutic relationship.

For this viewer it was like watching a spider coax its willing prey into its web then attacking .

In this case the spider is Ike the Psych not killing but stealing the life of its prey gullible Marty by alienating his willing victim from family and friends until any semblance of self reliance is extinguished.

The Shrink Next Door is not a heavy drama it has moments of great warmth and insight and a wonderful script by 3 women and 3 men.

The Directors Jesse Peretz and Michael Showalter have skilfully created the best series featuring a male duet performance I've seen this year both Will Ferrell and Paul Rudd are mesmerising in the creation of these complex characters I found myself wondering who was the more unwell the patient or the Psychiatrist?

I'm so glad I was recommended by a friend to watch this wonderful series

Ps Kathryn Hahn is wonderful as Marty's feisty sister a great character performance.

Paul Rudd and Will Ferrel are are exceptional together in this; it's interesting to see a more dramatic version of the characters. A perfect representation of mental breakdowns or any other underlining stress related experiences. I'm loving the series so far and I hope many more do too!

I give this a solid 7/10 as it was slow, but the characters were quite good. It's been a long time since I hated a character as much as I do Rudd's.

This isn't a comedy and I don't think it's marketed as such, but for some reason people jump to that conclusion based upon the actors. I see some reviews saying things like "only 1 laugh per hour" or something like that. They have the totally wrong genre here.

This is a good show.

This show is not a barrel of laughs and it's not supposed to be. I saw one reviewer wrote "Jewish people are funny and this should be a laugh riot." I'm not sure if that reviewer is Jewish or not, but either way, seriously? Sorry to sound like Joe Pesci, but are we clowns to you? Sorry the Jews and Jewish characters in the show didn't do their job of cracking you up. News flash: sometimes clowns are sad underneath!

This show is funny at times, but it isn't really a comedy. At most, it's a dark comedy. It's based on a true story of how a person was ruinously manipulated by an unethical therapist who needed therapy himself. You're chuckling one moment and cringing the next, which is exactly the reaction you should be having. In that sense, the show succeeds.

I'm not saying it's perfect. It can be slow at times, and Ferrell's other characters peep through quite a bit. He isn't the strongest player on the show, but he's committed and convincing enough. Paul Rudd is kind of a revelation as the smarmy climber who fools everyone, including his very lovely wife and to some degree even himself, into thinking he's doing good work on behalf of Ferrell's Marty. And Kathryn Hahn is Marty's sister Phyllis is terrific.

Don't watch it if you're looking for a lighthearted cynical romp. This is nuanced human drama about people, family, ethics, ambition, class and social machinations. It's complicated, dark, sometimes shocking and yes, sometimes funny. It's a very smart and engaging show with strong performances that sneaks up on you.

The actors are great but the story is stomach churning hard to watch. Seeing someone being taken advantage of episode after episode is not great viewing. I will continue to the end but hoping the evil doctor gets what coming to him.

I will watch anything with Kathryn Hahn, because she is exquisite. Paul Rudd is reliable, and Casey Wilson as well. But, I have never seen Will Ferrell playing a character with this depth, and he kills it. This alone would keep me coming back, but this is also a fun and engaging story. So, I love it!!

The true story is remarkable and the telling of it here is well done. Set design, performances, sound design, are all impeccably performed. With every episode, my heart breaks for Marty. I truly hope that he is happy now and living his best life.

Great cast of actors that really shine. Marty's sister reminds me of a family member, so relatable, the manipulation and passive aggressive juvenile behavior.

Looking forward to future episodes, so good!

Across the board: perfectly captures the time period in New York. Great cast gives great performances. But so what? Shrink exploits patient for eight episodes? Too slowly paced out and it gets repetitive very quickly. Could have made a terrific 90-120 minute movie. Cable TV providers ruin more decent movie ideas by stretching them into mini-series.

Will Ferrell has been a hit or a miss over the past decade or so but Paul Rudd's career seems to just be climbing. Pairing them up again for a show definitely is a winning combinations. I'd give it a 7/10 because it's more than sparked my interest to continue watching.

... but that doesn't mean it's bad. The negative reviews reflect people's expectations, not the quality of the show.

"Not realistic" ... says one review. Problem Is, it's based on a true story.

"Not funny" ... but it's not supposed to be. Two mostly comedic actors play the two leading roles. Their comedic chops make the representation of these two characters pretty ideal. Farrell's innocence and Rudd's slick cockiness really work for these two people.

Watch as long as you're ready to be infuriated from watching the story of an influential man take advantage of a naive person who has never learned to stand up for himself. The fact you get infuriated means Farrell and Rudd are doing a great job.

Maybe the cast is brilliant, but the plot.. it's painful to watch one person abusing another one more and more with each new episode. It's not funny, and it makes me feel terrible bad for the main character.

This is the perfect forum for Rudd and Farrell. Their quirky chemistry is evident right off the bat. I love the way it obliquely goes for the heart. It's unlike anything else I've seen in a while. Looking forward to the whole season.

Masterfully acted by Ferrell and Rudd and that in and of itself makes the series worth watching, however it's tedious and cringe inducing to see the manipulation unfold and it feels like real work while watching - even knowing this happened in real life doesn't elevate viewing satisfaction.

I had hoped to low key chill and just have some fun watching these two - this isn't it.

I don't think this series is as bad as some are saying..There is some funny stuff in this. I never was a WIll Ferell fan but I like Paul Rudd. Ferell plays a whining man with anxiety issues which should get laughs but becomes boring after awhile.... Rudd's grease ball type a user of a man that sees Ferell as his cash cow and a way to make himself look important is pretty good. With quick snippets at the beginning of the first two episodes shows things will not go well with Marty and Dr. Ike......It's obvious that the good Dr. Will end up destroying Marty by making him totally depending on this terrible opertunist...even though I am sure what is going to happen it still is a good watch....

Been waiting for this and was not disappointed. I think every review should come with an age. I'm 44 and they don't make them like they used too.

I thought this was intelligentl, interesting and well acted. I love Will Ferrell, I think he is a comedy genius (sometimes) and I think he can turn his act to seriousness when the time calls for it. He's somewhere InBetween here. Really enjoying this show and Paul Rudd is fantastic too.

So much rubbish that disappoints but I'm looking forward to each episode.

The show was created well with all of the important ingredients in 2021. The cast is brilliant, the plot is relevant, there are quite a few funny twists but all together that doesn't work unfortunately. It's not touching, not deep as it's trying to pretend and More importantly it's quite boring. However, it's watchable but definitely not the greatest.

I don't always agree with critics, but this has a 42% positive among "top professional reviewers" at rotten tomatoes, meaning most reviewers paned this. And I agree it is in the 4/10 star neighborhood. PR flacks can organize shilling of "sexists man" votes, but the can't make a mediocre series better.

Rodger Ebert site panned it, as did Slant Mag, Hollywood reporter, Rolling Stone, Variety, NYTimes etc. The LA Times simply called it "Dull."

My experience with this watching three episode's was that it was utterly predictable and steadily cringeworthy. Ferrell is a talent but seemed to be sleepwalking or simply not wanting to be in the series. Rudd has always played the same moderate anxiety nebbish, and does here. That is fresh for about one minute.

Folks we are in the post-golden age of TV. Audiences are now used to sophisticated, quality entertainment, yet junk like this also manages to get made as well.

4/10 at best.

It seemed as if it might have potential but then got way worse. No chemistry between any of the actors, abysmal writing, dialog weak..I cannot imagine how someone thought this was ready to release.

I really got what I expected from the whole cast. I found storyline really unique and direction was also nice. I enjoyed so much watching Paul Rudd in this character. Also loved the makeups in the finale.

Everyone in this show ticks me off. Dr. Ike is a horrible person, Marty, just pisses you off with his decisions. Phyllis is overbearing... The list could go on and on. All that being said, they are all perfect. The casting is amazing, the acting is spot on. The emotions I am feeling while watching this train-wreck are excellently crafted and executed. Every episode leaves me feeling anxiety ridden and exhausted. A great watch, but I could not imagine binging this show.