DVD Movie Review #177 Perception Season 1

There are a number of things that get a person into a series, seeing it on TV, TV Spots, Friends and of course there is always the twist of Fate. Movie Stop was closing and they decided to do a sale of 75% off. Well for $2.50 I am willing to try out a series that stars one of the major players of Will & Grace. I must admit I am a tad burned out on Police Procedurals but in the end it was worth the pickup.

 

I had been asking myself the questions over and over again as this series dances around the line of offensive and informative. I will make a case for the later of the two. I work with mental health and have seen series and movies involving Mental Illness before. I will say there is no series around that brings out the subject of mental illness pulling out a new diagnosis every episode and many of which you don’t seen when it comes to mainstream media. The acting is also extremely good. I must admit Eric McCormack is a pretty good actor and he is really good at this part. His mannerisms and the way that they present his Mental Illness draws me in and is fairly believable, this is coming from someone in the field. The cases are fairly interesting and one of the episodes in Season one left me a little tearful covering how often law enforcement just loses their ability to care when Mental Illness is involved as well as showing  the terrible treatment they get. I remember a quote from the individual after they went into the hospital "The closest person to me in the world isn't real but I still miss her."  

In the end this is yet another police procedural. I mean I have seen half a dozen series about an eccentric yet gifted individual consulting and paired with a female officer solving crimes. Elementary, Sleepy Hollow and Lucifer are good examples of this formula. I feel it is a bit tiring and repetitive.  I must admit that there is a part of me that is also irked by the lead character benefiting so much from his illness and not taking medications which may send the wrong message.  I must also say that the amount of benefit he receives is exceptional as I have never encountered a case where a person has helpful hallucinations, is aware of them while off of medications and utilizes them to gain insight into himself. I am not saying it is impossible as I have seen one in a million cases before but still….this part tests the suspension of my disbelief. The other thing is that I am uncertain this would be good for anyone with Schizophrenia to see especially the last episodes of this that shows that paranoid delusions can sometimes be real. It made for interesting viewing but I didn't like the premise and the ending left me ok but still not happy in the end.

Other than this series being overdone many times over and the potential questionable nature of the message I must admit I cannot help but like this series. The acting is very much on form and I feel that this is definitely worth checking out. At least I am interested in seeing Season 2 and we can see where that takes us.   

 

Rating:  6/10