Mr Inbetween
A review, I suppose
I don’t write much in the way of television or film reviews. I feel vastly underqualified to do so. I was writing a review of Nolan’s Odyssey, but I’m not entirely sure I will finish it. Anyway, this week I think I’d write about something else. Also, I’m not entirely sure I should really recommend that you watch Mr Inbetween, but I did and so here are some thoughts.
Mr. Inbetween is a very very good show. That’s why I watched it. It’s a dark comedy in which Scott Ryan, the creator and writer, is also the lead star. That’s because he came up with this idea and filmed a student version of it as film, and then re-developed it with grant money and released it as The Magician in 2005. The tv series was screened in 2018-2021.
Ray is the lead character. He’s a hitman who lives in suburban Sydney. He’s also trying to be a decent father to his 8-12yo daughter (she ages across the show), manage a relationship, and look after his brother Bruce who has motor neuron disease.
If you want an insight into Australian culture, this is a great example. It’s very Australian, and not in a kitsch way, not in a way that’s made up for export. It’s just, suburban Australian life. I can’t imagine what it’s like watching this as a cultural outsider, but it’s so ordinarily Australian that if you’re not Australian you should watch it for cultural knowledge.
The second thing I enjoy about this is that almost no one is good looking. The biggest name-star on the show is Brooke Satchwell, and even she is not looking that great in the show. This isn’t beautiful actors pretending to be ugly either. It’s just… ordinary people.
The third thing I enjoyed about the show is that it’s incredibly unglamorous and down-to-earth. That extends to all sorts of aspects. The violence is there, undoubtedly, but it’s not glamorised. It’s not made ‘extra gritty’ either. It just happens. Ray is violent, but in a matter-of-fact way. It’s how he solves certain problems. There’s a small amount of nudity, but it’s never the focus and never highlighted, it’s almost incidental. There is a lot of swearing, but if you’ve ever spent time with everyday Australians this is also completely normal.
Ray, of course, is a likeable character. That’s what draws you in. Sure, he kills people for money. But he mostly kills bad people. He has a code - he doesn’t hurt women or children. He doesn’t do drugs or get caught up in ‘nastier’ criminal activities. He’s just quite good at killing people and is unbothered by it. In Ray’s world and mind, violence is a tool to solve problems, and if people don’t treat other people with respect, you can’t be a doormat, you need to assert yourself first and violence is the way to do that. And he looks after his mates. Quintessential Australian values, just from a possible psychopath.
The comedy of this show is never laugh out loud (well, maybe the group therapy sessions he has to attend). It’s dark, yes, gallows humour at times. Subtle and droll. And I like it. Good thing to, as this would not work as a crime show - Ray lives in a world without forensics and would be in jail very quickly.
But do you know what makes this show shine? There’s a lot of television in the world, and most of it isn’t very good. It’s entertainment. There are really good shows that rise above that.1 And I think this is a surprising example of it. It’s the human relationships.
The conversations Ray has with his daughter (who’s only there some of the time, custody being shared with Ray’s ex-wife played by Natalie Tran of all people) are so genuinely true-to-parental-life. And these age and develop appropriately across the three seasons. She really is a child in season 1, believing in unicorns, and Ray is trying to do right by her. By season 3 she’s 12, addicted to her phone, comes with attitude, and dealing with drugs and teen boys.
The most powerful moments happen with Ray’s closest relationships. The course of his relationship with girlfriend Ally; the encounters with his estranged and ostracised father, who increasingly suffers from Alzheimer's; and most of all with his brother, Bruce. Bruce is played by Nicholas Cassim, whose performance has lead some to believe he himself has MND. It is touching to see how Ray cares for his brother through the series, even as his condition declines. It’s Ray’s humanity shining through.
I think, then, that what makes this a wonderful show is that firstly it shows the beauty of the very ordinary. Secondly, it’s the common humanity of the protagonist, who loves his ‘neighbours’ as himself: his daughter, his brother, his best mate; maybe not quite loving some of his other neighbours. Thirdly, it’s got just superb acting and super writing.
Next week I think we’ll back to some New Testament reflections…
My two examples of that are Andor which is verging on cinema, and Mad Men, which I think was impeccable television.
Thanks for the recommendation!