Severance reviews

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Indebted to the world-bending works of Charlie Kaufman and Franz Kafka , but also refreshingly original, "Severance" tells a complex story of unimaginable technology that takes place in an exaggerated, impossible world that still feels relatable and deeply human. There are no windows. There are no posters on the walls. Four cubicles sit in the center of the room, at which four employees mine data, a process that consists of looking at numbers and waiting for a feeling about them to make it clear that those numbers need to be shuffled off into a folder. One will not have any memory of the other.

Severance reviews

Hold it a second. In the series, which was created by Dan Erickson and directed by Ben Stiller and Aoife McArdle, the employees who work on the so-called severance floor at Lumon Industries—a shadowy megacorporation—know nothing of their lives outside the office. They have chosen to undergo a surgical procedure in which their consciousness is bifurcated between work and home. Our protagonist is Mark Scout, or Mark S. At night, he sits at home alone brooding and drinking whiskey; at work, the tragedy lifts, and he immerses himself in senseless tasks. Mark works in the department of Macrodata Refinement M. John Turturro , a soulful, courtly figure and a stickler for company policy; and Dylan G. Zach Cherry , a wisecracking pragmatist who is competitive about earning the corporate perks that Lumon doles out. For the most part, these innies seem untroubled by their split existence. Atop their desks, they each keep a framed group photo of the department. But not all is hunky-dory. One day, Mark arrives at work to discover that Petey has disappeared. In his absence, Mark is tasked with training a newly severed employee, Helly R.

And I love it so far. This is series unlike anything airing and has great potential to be considered one of the greats of offbeat irreverent dark comedy severance reviews ever.

Andrew joined The Verge in , writing over 4, stories. Each new chapter is a chance to see something more messed up and discover the dark depths the capitalist machine is willing to sink to. This article contains spoilers for the first season of Severance. Severance starts out fairly slowly. This allows people to essentially skip work for eight hours a day and focus on their outside life. Their entire lives are contained to the office.

Things you buy through our links may earn Vox Media a commission. In , in an early indication of the anti-capitalist, anti-authority themes that would define his work for decades to come, Philip K. Dick published the short story Paycheck. A man named Jennings wakes up with no memory of the past two years and no idea of the work he did in that time for Rethrick Construction. Was it out of self-preservation or fear?

Severance reviews

A few minutes into the premiere of Severance , we see Mark Scout Adam Scott alone in his car, weeping uncontrollably. He eventually pulls himself together and goes inside the building where he works. He exchanges pleasantries with the security guard on duty and takes the elevator to his basement office. He closes his eyes, and a change immediately takes place as he reaches his floor. Mark works at Lumon Industries, in the macrodata refinement division, which is as meaningless as it sounds. She wakes up on top of a conference table with no memory of who she was before this moment. Her disorientation and increasing horror set the tone for the nine-episode thriller. This is not a wacky workplace comedy. Corporations would obviously benefit the most from this arrangement, and Erickson and Stiller quickly establish Lumon Industries as sinister.

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It's just such a thoughtful, original show that will have you guessing throughout the show. At one point, a contraband book of New Age philosophical gibberish makes its way into the department, and the refiners treat it like the most important piece of literature ever written. MoistMovies 20 February I had no idea what to expect when I first starting watching Severance. Lesser-known actors such as Britt Lower, Zach Cherry, and Tramell Tillman round out this solid ensemble with their own unforgettable flourishes. By Richard Brody. Well-cast, brilliantly-directed and edited, with one of the most spellbinding opening sequences in recent TV history, "Severance" is the perfect blend of Sci-fi, human interest, mystery, dystopia, and dark comedic undertones. I'm so glad they already decided to pick it up for future seasons! In Severance , those strange twists are often the reason for the steadily creeping sense of dread. DiCaprioFan1 11 January Create a list ». The director Ethan Coen, writing the script with his wife, Tricia Cooke, leans on comical violence and genre winks for this road movie of lesbians seeking love. Imaginary Peyton Robinson. American Dreamer Carla Renata.

Andrew joined The Verge in , writing over 4, stories.

Severance is very well-written. One will not have any memory of the other. The whole mystery about this secretive company and the atmosphere inside the workplace is so well done. Follow him on Twitter bradyconnolly American Dreamer Carla Renata. The viewer is then given enough interest and mystery to latch onto with a drip-feed of vital information in this beauty of a slow-burner. So I'm going to keep this very short for now and update with a full review at the end of the series. The look of Lumon HQ is mid-century brutalism meets Apple: endless, spotless hallways and clean angles, all figured in shades of white and gray and blue and green. Dialogue is witty and sharp, the fact that Ben Stiller directed this blows my mind. Andrew joined The Verge in , writing over 4, stories. What is the purpose of the department that Mark and Helly stumble upon in the basement, which is full of baby goats? Kev's TV List. Four cubicles sit in the center of the room, at which four employees mine data, a process that consists of looking at numbers and waiting for a feeling about them to make it clear that those numbers need to be shuffled off into a folder.