Mike Schur’s “A Man on the Inside” is a delightfully mesmerizing film, a comedy that becomes serene almost as soon as it plunges into its turbulent world. The co-creator of “Parks and Recreation” and “The Good Place” is not only one of the best writers in the history of the genre (he also contributed to “Hacks,” “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” and “The Office,” ‘For the record), he is also an influential proponent of, and believer in, actual human decency, an increasingly rare commodity, after all he wrote a book called. How to Be Perfect: The Right Answer to Every Ethical Question Which accommodates the imperfections of the human condition and at the same time enhances its potential. In his latest project, he adapts the Academy Award-nominated story of “The Mole Agent” with humility and grace, starting with a mystery and revealing it to be much more than a stolen necklace.
It helps a lot that Schur is reunited here with the great Ted Danson, who has been one of the best TV presenters for four decades and counting. The star of “The Good Place” perfectly understands Schur’s comedic voice, which is rooted in both wit and compassion. He plays a retired man named Charles who is still grieving the loss of his wife Dorothy, who passed away while battling dementia. We’ve seen a lot of stories of dementia over the years, but the stories of survivors are rarely told. It’s hard enough to lose someone you’ve been with for decades, but it’s even harder when you can’t actually say goodbye because they’ve long ago forgotten who you are.
Charles channels this grief into an unexpected project when he answers a classified ad placed by a private detective named Julie (Lila Richrich Estrada), who is assigned to investigate a family burglary (Shoore regular Mark Evan Jackson. (by the character played by ) is hired. Heritage in an assisted living facility known as Pacific View. Charles goes undercover, the “inside man” who goes to Pacific View and solves the case. He hides the work from his daughter Emily (Mary Elizabeth Ellis) and acts like another client for the house’s manager Didi (Stephanie Beatriz, another Shure veterinarian).
Of course, the structure of “A Man on the Inside” allows Schur and his writers to populate Pacific View with memorable personalities, including sensual Virginia (Sally Struthers), charming Florence (Margaret Avery), grumpy Elliot (John Getz ) Are included. Crazy Susan (Lori Tan Chin), sweet Gladys (Susan Ruttan), wonderful Calbert (Stephen McKinley Henderson) and more. The writers cleverly avoid the easy jokes that would be made on the CBS studio audience version of this show. It reminded me of this year’s excellent “Thelma,” in the way it makes fun of the elderly without pulling punches for laughs. A delightful Struthers and wise Beatriz are perfect, but most special to me is Henderson, a wonderful character actor, who leans into his warm screen presence in the season-ending episode, one of my favorite half-hours of the year. .
All the supporting players work, but this is really Danson’s show, and it’s one of my favorite comedies of the year. He shows a more vulnerable side than usual, acknowledges his age more than usual – somehow, he’s almost 80, which absolutely blows my mind – and is serious about it with a mixture of satisfaction and dread. Talks about what comes with reaching the end of life. His relationship with his daughter feels a bit forced and awkwardly written – I never thought they were related – but it’s actually a gateway to give Danson some of the most poignant material of his career at the end of the season. .
“A Man on the Inside” may falter for some viewers as being one of those comedies that isn’t exactly laugh-out-loud funny. Sure, there are funny lines of dialogue, but it’s more character-driven than punchline-driven, which is an asset for this audience, but I can see fans thinking that they wish they had more. Laughing more than that. It may not be the funniest show of the year, but I don’t think Schur and company are aiming for that title. They simply want to give you a lesson of life embedded in a strange mystery: value the time spent with loved ones and recognize that it is never too late to meet the people who can change your life forever. I don’t know about you, but I needed this.
The entire season was screened for review. Now on Netflix.