Half Man review
Cast: Richard Gadd, Jamie Bell, Mitchell Robertson, Stuart Campbell, Marianna McIvor, Charlotte Blackwood
Number of episodes: 6
Creator: Richard Gadd
Where to watch: Lionsgate Play
Star rating: ★★★.5
Baby Reindeer was a frightening depiction of obsession and stalking, which became a breakout turn for creator-actor Richard Gadd. After its Emmy sweep, the Scottish actor has returned with Half Man, a similarly cold and brutal tale, although entirely different in style and thematic elements. Here, he is placing the camera between the fractured bond of two brothers who are not bound by DNA but by friendship and violence. It is about how men perceive themselves in a world that always want them to stand up for themselves. This is a hard watch but the performances as well as the storytelling are so compelling that one cannot help but watch.
The premise
The limited series starts off at a wedding, where the groom looks rattled with the arrival of an unexpected guest. “Your brother from another lover,” is how he is introduced. The scene quickly shifts to flashback when we meet the characters as teenagers, providing context into their relationship. Stepbrothers Niall (a fantastic Mitchell Robertson as the teen, Jamie Bell as an adult) and Ruben (Stuart Campbell, and later Gadd himself) come to share the same space, unaccustomed to the way their mothers live together- providing fodder for the town to spread homophobic gossip.
Niall is bullied in school because of his timid personality and mostly because of his perceived sexuality. When Ruben gets to the same school from the Polmont Young Offenders Institute, Niall is horrified because he knows what Ruben is capable of. He is like a ticking time bomb, ready to explode any moment. His nightmare is only beginning as Ruben’s hypermasculinity towers over him, and forces him to have experiences that will leave a lasting impact. Ruben and the girl with whom he is hooking up, Mona (Charlotte Blackwood), forces him to lose his virginity.
As adults, Ruben and Niall’s lives will continue to intertwine in horrific ways, as both of them express their grief (and anger) differently. Niall is consumed with dollops of regret and self-loathing while Ruben’s hypermasculinity becomes a kind of shield as well as weakness. The pair’s dynamic is a volcano in the making, mired in abuse, emotional blackmail and shame. In episode 3, Half Man culminates into its most exquisite scene- where a confrontation takes place in a hospital room after Ruben and Niall meet after years, finally letting the lid open. Gadd and Bell are a powerhouse together, Gadd in particular using his physicality to shattering effect.
Final thoughts
With excellent control over dialogue, Half Man paints a bleak and wrenchingly honest take on masculinity and how it turns toxic over unresolved shame. The show is daring, brave and occasionally a stretch, given that after a point Ruben does become a case for a cautionary tale rather than a fully realised character with living, breathing humanity. The case of Niall, in contrast, is much more in consideration as the viewer gets more time and space into his complex perspective. Still, Half Man makes for compelling television, and cements Richard Gadd as a terrific new voice. This is one of those shows you don’t forget easily.
