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  • TV Review: ‘Severance’ Season 2

    Adam Scott in 'Severance', now streaming on Apple TV+.
    Adam Scott in ‘Severance’, now streaming on Apple TV+.

    ‘Severance’ Season 2 receives 9 out of 10 stars.

    Returning to Apple TV+ for its second season with the first episode on January 17th, ‘Severance’ once is here again to interrogate the concept of work/life balance and spin more corporate mysteries around the worker drones of the weird, cult-like Lumon corporation.

    It has been a long wait, but as the second season picks up the dangling story threads with an accomplished, confident first episode, a worthwhile test of fans’ collective patience.

    Related Article: Patricia Arquette Talks ‘Severance’ and the show’s SAG Awards Nominations

    Does ‘Severance’ Season 2 meet its entertainment quota?

    (L to R) Tramell Tillman, Alia Shawkat, Stefano Carannante and Bob Balaban in 'Severance', now streaming on Apple TV+.
    (L to R) Tramell Tillman, Alia Shawkat, Stefano Carannante and Bob Balaban in ‘Severance’, now streaming on Apple TV+.

    ‘Severance’ first slid on to screens back in February 2022, and the stylish, unusual series immediately grabbed the public consciousness. With its unsettlingly stark visuals and science fiction take on the idea that your work life can, in the wrong situation, be a ceaseless slog, it almost immediately joined the ranks of shows such as ‘The Twilight Zone’ and ‘Black Mirror’ that explore such territory through fantastical means with just the lingering suspicion that it’s all too terrifyingly possible.

    The concept of “severance,” where employs seemingly agree to have their personalities cleaved in two so their work selves no nothing of what goes on in the outside world and vice-versa is such a fascinating one and here handled so effectively. It doesn’t hurt that the show boasts an excellent cast and superior creative team.

    You can almost imagine a secure set up such as the Pentagon wondering how it can employ this in real life, though the true strength of the show is in its delivery of metaphor and psychological thrills.

    Script and Direction

    Dan Erickson on set of 'Severance', now streaming on Apple TV+.
    Dan Erickson on set of ‘Severance’, now streaming on Apple TV+.

    Creator Dan Erickson came up with the basic idea for the show while working the sort of mind-numbing day job mirrored here. The real joy of ‘Severance’ is that Erickson and his writing team have spun that into all manner of creative territories. The show isn’t just about its mystery elements –– the characters are empathetic (and in some of the management, utterly creepy) and the sheer level of deep thought about every aspect of the Lumon company and its employees is worthy of applause.

    This is a corporation that is part factory, part data processing center and part near-religious cult, based around one legacy family. It’s almost surprising that a company such as Apple –– famously known for its own quirksome attitude to work and the cultish devotion of its customers –– would be the one to put this on screens.

    Ben Stiller on set of 'Severance', now streaming on Apple TV+.
    Ben Stiller on set of ‘Severance’, now streaming on Apple TV+.

    The directorial team, led by Ben Stiller –– who is absolutely doing some of his best work here behind the camera –– has keyed into a visual style that is both clever and completely unsettling. Dividing the palette between the outside world and the sterile corporate shell of Lumon, it all helps tell the story. And Theodore Shapiro’s offbeat score amplifies it all, gliding between cheery tones and an eerie, winsome slide into melancholy that keeps you off-kilter.

    Season 2’s first episode picks up in the wake of the “innies” trying to break free and makes the interesting choice to focus on them at the expense of their outside world counterparts. But it works well, and episode 2 promises to explore more of the fallout for those who know them away from Lumon.

    ‘Severance’ Season 2: Performances

    Around star Adam Scott, the ‘Severance’ team has built a superb cast.

    Adam Scott as Mark Scout

    Adam Scott in 'Severance', now streaming on Apple TV+.
    Adam Scott in ‘Severance’, now streaming on Apple TV+.

    The focus of the show is on Scott’s character and his decision to undergo the procedure partly because of the death of his wife (even as –– spoiler alert in case you haven’t yet caught up with the first season –– he learns she might actually be alive) left him wanting to shut out the pain and grief.

    Scott’s low-key delivery is perfectly suited to the tone of the show; you buy him as a man who seems to have accepted his lot… until he starts to worry there’s something he’s simply not being told.

    Zach Cherry as Dylan George

    (L to R) John Turturro and Zach Cherry in 'Severance', now streaming on Apple TV+.
    (L to R) John Turturro and Zach Cherry in ‘Severance’, now streaming on Apple TV+.

    Cherry has been a great supporting performer for years, and ‘Severance’ gives him a meatier part to play as Dylan, who along with Mark, becomes one of the “innies” to try and break free of the company’s control.

    Britt Lower as Helly Riggs

    Britt Lower in 'Severance', now streaming on Apple TV+.
    Britt Lower in ‘Severance’, now streaming on Apple TV+.

    In the first season, Helly is our way of exploring the weird world of Lumon as she decides early on that she’s made a mistake. The latter part of Season 1 gave her more depth and a surprising twist, and while the first episode of Season 2 doesn’t directly explore that, it still gives Lower plenty to do, and she’s superb in the role.

    John Turturro as Irving Bailiff

    John Turturro in 'Severance', now streaming on Apple TV+.
    John Turturro in ‘Severance’, now streaming on Apple TV+.

    There’s no doubting Turturro’s chops at this stage of his career and sparked by the script, Irving’s a great character, initially loyal to Lumon, but quickly conflicted an angst-ridden. Turturro delivers a masterclass every episode.

    Tramell Tillman as Seth Milchick

    Tramell Tillman in 'Severance', now streaming on Apple TV+.
    Tramell Tillman in ‘Severance’, now streaming on Apple TV+.

    Following the ouster of Patricia Arquette’s Harmony Cobel in the latter part of Season 1, Tillman’s Milchick has moved into the role of smooth-yet-threatening corporate middle manager. And he’s got just the right level of smarm and deceit to twist our leads’ expectations and keep them guessing.

    Final Thoughts

    Patricia Arquette in 'Severance', now streaming on Apple TV+.
    Patricia Arquette in ‘Severance’, now streaming on Apple TV+.

    It has been three years since the first season landed on Apple’s servers, and since then, the second has had to weather delays, strikes and a long post-production process, the gap between seasons causing fans some frustration.

    But like seeing a friendly colleague again after they’ve been away, it’s a very welcome return for a distinctive and well-crafted show. Step into the televisual elevator and let your “innie” enjoy sinking back into the world of the series.

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    What’s the story of ‘Severance’ Season 2?

    Mark Scout (Adam Scott) leads a team at Lumon Industries, whose employees have undergone a severance procedure that surgically divides their memories between their work and personal lives.

    This daring experiment in “work-life balance” is called into question as Mark finds himself at the center of an unraveling mystery that will force him to confront the true nature of his work… and of himself.

    In season two, Mark and his friends learn the dire consequences of trifling with the severance barrier, leading them further down a path of woe.

    Who is in the cast of ‘Severance’ Season 2?

    Adam Scott in 'Severance', now streaming on Apple TV+.
    Adam Scott in ‘Severance’, now streaming on Apple TV+.

    Movies Directed By Ben Stiller:

    Buy Ben Stiller Movies on Amazon

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  • Movie Review: ‘You Hurt My Feelings’

    Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Beth in A24's 'You Hurt My Feelings.'
    Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Beth in A24’s ‘You Hurt My Feelings.’

    In theaters May 26th, ‘You Hurt My Feelings’ represents a reunion for director Nicole Holofcener and star Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and a welcome one at that.

    In an era when adult dramas and comedies have a hard time finding space between giant franchise behemoths crowding the multiplex, it’s reassuring to know that ‘You Hurt My Feelings’ represents the latest reliable low-key laugh-grabber from Holofcener, who specializes in stories of characters obsessed with their emotional and life status, whose worlds are thrown for a loop by unexpected circumstances.

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    What’s the story of ‘You Hurt My Feelings’?

    The film charts the emotional rollercoaster of married couple Louis-Dreyfus’ Beth (a writer whose memoir was published to some acclaim and whose latest book, a work of fiction, is still in progress) and Don (Tobias Menzies), a therapist who is losing faith in his ability to counsel his increasingly dissatisfied patients and in his own appearance.

    Their seemingly happy, if slightly rut-riding marriage is plunged into disarray when Beth overhears Don telling brother-in-law Mark (Arian Moayed) that he doesn’t really like her new novel after reading many drafts. Stunned, Beth begins to question whether he’s ever truly been honest with her, and how real she has been with others in her life, including sister Sarah (Michaela Watkins) and son Eliot (Owen Teague), an aspiring writer himself currently biding his time managing a New York cannabis store.

    As the ripples of the unlikely drama spread out through both partners’ work and family groups, real truths start to swim to the surface of this seemingly happy relationship.

    Jeannie Berlin as Georgia in A24's 'You Hurt My Feelings.'
    Jeannie Berlin as Georgia in A24’s ‘You Hurt My Feelings.’

    Who else is in the movie?

    Aside from the leads, Holofcener’s latest also features Jeannie Berlin as Beth and Sarah’s grouchy mother Georgia, Amber Tamblyn, David Cross, Zach Cherry and Sarah Steele among Don’s patients, plus Bryan Reynoso, Karolena Greenidge, Doug Moe, Lynnsey Lewis and Claudia Robinson.

    Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Beth and director Nicole Holofcener on the set of A24's 'You Hurt My Feelings.'
    (L to R) Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Beth and director Nicole Holofcener on the set of A24’s ‘You Hurt My Feelings.’

    Related Article: Movie Review: ‘You People’

    A welcome reunion

    The biggest advantage that ‘Feelings’ has –– beyond Holofcener’s typically incisive, funny script and subtle direction –– is her welcome reunion with Louis-Dreyfus after 2013’s ‘Enough Said’. She may have some way to go to be a Holofcener collaborator on the scale of, say, Catherine Keener, but the two have clearly found a solid vibe.

    As Beth, Louis-Dreyfus switches tracks from (mostly) contented wife and mother to puddle of neuroses, perfectly conveying the sort of nervy artistic character yearning for approval from those around them and saddled with a mother (Berlin’s Georgia is more of a standard character type but gives her layers) who is never quite satisfied. Louis-Dreyfus sells every moment of Beth’s journey, turning what could be a frustrating archetype into a relatable woman. She’s given more to do than, say, her turn as Jonah Hill’s overzealous Jewish mother in ‘You People’.

    Tobias Menzies as Don in A24's 'You Hurt My Feelings.'
    Tobias Menzies as Don in A24’s ‘You Hurt My Feelings.’

    As Don, meanwhile, British actor Menzies is also great. Far from being a stock husband in a movie like this, he has his own inner life and a clutch of funny, grumpy therapy clients with their own issues (Cross and Tamblyn bring humorous real-life married couple energy to two of them) and is the perfect twitchy complement to Beth. It’s also entertaining how he’s the sort of therapist quick to offer advice to others about how to figure out their relationships but seemingly stymied by the mildest issue arising in his own.

    And their marriage comes across as realistic and nuanced, rather than schticky, even when in the midst of their disagreement.

    Yet while Beth and Don are the focus, the film shares the care and attention beyond them, building up Watkins’ Sarah and her frustrations as an interior designer, picking out ever more ridiculous/ugly lamps for a choosy client (Clara Wong’s Ali), and questioning whether she’d be better off ditching the job and finding something more meaningful. Moayed, meanwhile, Sarah’s schlubby actor husband, is dealing with his own career crisis. Mildly successful in movies, he’s now struggling with his latest job in the theater and beginning to wonder whether acting is something he should do at all. More normally found being much slicker and successful on ‘Succession’, Moayed is a great fourth pillar in the central story.

    Tobias Menzies as Don and Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Beth in A24's 'You Hurt My Feelings.'
    (L to R) Tobias Menzies as Don and Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Beth in A24’s ‘You Hurt My Feelings.’

    Are there issues?

    As is normal for Holofcener, the stakes are incredibly low-level, seen as a problem only really by the people involved. And there is a chance that will turn off some audiences –– is it really possible to truly empathize with wealthy (or at least comfortable) New Yorkers whining about someone not liking their latest work or feeling let down by their professional choices? Fortunately, the writer/director finds the humanity in these characters, and the various actors give you enough to make you care how their stories turn out.

    Yet in a movie where there are so many well-drawn characters, it’s only really Eliot who suffers from a slightly undernourished take; it’s no fault of Teague, who offers a funny performance, but he really only has one opportunity to shine, in a minor breakdown in front of his parents about how his mother’s encouragement set him up to fail at life.

    But those are relatively minor complaints in the effective new film from a writer/director whose keen sense of comedy and character are undimmed. It’s a pleasure to have new work from Holofcener, and something reliably entertaining for anyone who isn’t drawn to capes fluttering in the wind, or cars racing around the streets.

    It might not be quite on the same level as ‘Enough Said’, or the Oscar-nominated, Melissa McCarthy-starring ‘Can You Ever Forgive Me?’, but ‘You Hurt My Feelings’ is a solid entry in Holofcener’s neuroses-laden character canon.

    ‘You Hurt My Feelings’ receives 7 out of 10 stars.

    Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Beth and Tobias Menzies as Don in A24's 'You Hurt My Feelings.'
    (L to R) Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Beth and Tobias Menzies as Don in A24’s ‘You Hurt My Feelings.’

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    Buy Tickets: ‘You Hurt My Feelings’ Movie Showtimes

    Buy Julia Louis-Dreyfus Movies on Amazon

    ‘You Hurt My Feelings’ is produced by Likely Story, and FilmNation Entertainment. It is set to release in theaters on May 26th, 2023.

  • ‘Severance’ Interview: Patricia Arquette Talks Apple TV+ Series

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    Academy Award winning actress Patricia Arquette (‘Boyhood’) is among the cast of Apple TV+’s acclaimed series ‘Severance,’ which was directed by Ben Stiller and nominated for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series at the upcoming 2023 Screen Actors Guild Awards.

    What is the plot of ‘Severance?’

    ‘Severance’ is about a biotechnology corporation called Lumon Industries, which uses a mindwipe medical procedure called “severance” to separate the consciousness of their employees between their lives at work and outside of it. One severed employee, Mark (Adam Scott), gradually uncovers a web of conspiracy. Arquette portrays Harmony Cobel, Mark’s “unsevered” boss, who outside of work goes undercover as Mrs. Selvig, Mark’s next-door neighbor.

    Who is in the cast of ‘Severance?’

    ‘Severance’ stars Adam Scott, Zach Cherry, Britt Lower, Tramell Tillman, Jen Tullock, Dichen Leachman, Michael Chernus, John Turturro, Christopher Walken, and Patricia Arquette.

    How many 2023 Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations did ‘Severance’ receive?

    ‘Severance’ was nominated for two SAG Awards including Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series for Adam Scott, and the entire cast was nominated for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series.

    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Patricia Arquette about her work on ‘Severance,’ playing two characters, the success of the series, and the show’s Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations.

    Patricia Arquette stars in 'Severance,' now streaming on Apple TV+.
    Patricia Arquette stars in ‘Severance,’ now streaming on Apple TV+.

    You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interview with Patricia Arquette about ‘Severance.’

    Moviefone: To begin with, what does it mean to you to have the cast nominated for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series by your peers at the Screen Actors Guild?

    Patricia Arquette: It’s so exciting. I mean, everyone here worked really hard and in weird circumstances. But we have seasoned actors who’ve been around a long time that came in to play in this as ensemble and then we have younger actors who came out of theater and have given so much to this show. So we’re all super excited and grateful. There’s nothing like being nominated by your peers and we’re just honored.

    MF: You’ve worked with Ben Stiller before, both as an actor on ‘Flirting with Disaster’ and as a director on ‘Escape at Dannemora.’ So what was it like reuniting with him on this series?

    PA: It was great. We worked together in ‘Escape at Dannemora,’ I was the actor and he was the director. But this has such a different tone, again, I’m blown away by Ben and his talent. I mean, the way that he sets up shots, the way he works with our cinematographer, Jessica Lee Gagné, the composition of things, and the tone, which we never could really understand as actors. Should we go funnier? Should we go darker? He had us kind of hovering somewhere in between, which gives the show a very unique kind of tension. I love working with Ben. I think he’s one of the greatest directors we have in America.

    Patricia Arquette and Tramell Tillman in 'Severance,' now streaming on Apple TV+.
    (L to R) Patricia Arquette and Tramell Tillman in ‘Severance,’ now streaming on Apple TV+.

    Related Articles: ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ and ‘The Banshees of Inisherin’ Lead SAG Nominations

    MF: You play two roles in the series, Harmony Cobel and Mrs. Selvig. Can you talk about the challenges of making them different, even though they are really the same character?

    PA: Well, one of them is this woman who works in this corporation and she’s worked her way up to this upper management position. She speaks in a way that she thinks sounds like leadership, authority and success. She’s desperate to hold onto her position in this corporation. While at the same time she wants more glory for this company. She’s doing something that’s a little bit on the sidelines and she’s trying to insinuate herself into this employee’s life.

    Now she has a lot of knowledge about this employee. So she knows the easiest way to get into his life is to play on his mommy issues, be the fumbling aunt next door who needs help. So she’s putting on a character, using the knowledge she has of his emotional story, his emotional flaws, his emotional vulnerabilities. But while she’s doing that, she actually realizes oh, we’re laughing at the same time. Are we becoming friends? So she’s kind of trying on these human feelings, and freedom. She has more emotional freedom as Ms. Selvig than she does as Ms. Cobel.

    It’s weird and interesting, and it’s part of the conversation I think that you have with your director. Like, “I want to try this. Is that too far?” At first, they just gave me the pilot, so I didn’t even really know where it was going at all. But to build these characters, to find that sound, I was listening to Mid-Atlantic movies like the sound in the 40’s in Hollywood, and then also ‘Maude,’ her (Bea Arthur) sound. Then looking at images like ‘Rhoda’, the TV show, for Ms. Selvig’s wardrobe, taking inspiration from that and working with our wardrobe department to design that. It’s all really fun, honestly.

    MF: Finally, are you surprised by the show’s success and why do you think its resonated with audiences?

    PA: I think people do feel like their work life consumes them. I don’t know if people feel that satisfied with their everyday work life. Yet, in that work environment, we see these characters really trying to connect and forging these little kind of family pod groups. Then also on the outside, we see Mark’s life. There’s a lot of pain in the real world. There’s a lot of pain outside and things that we want to run away from. I think as we get older, life isn’t necessarily what we thought it would be like when we were teenagers.

    Adam Scott, Patricia Arquette, John Turturro, Tramell Tillman and Zach Cherry in 'Severance,' now streaming on Apple TV+.
    (L to R) Adam Scott, Patricia Arquette, John Turturro, Tramell Tillman and Zach Cherry in ‘Severance,’ now streaming on Apple TV+.

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