'Severance' review: Ben Stiller finds horror in 9-to-5 monotony in his unnerving Apple TV+ thriller
We've all had those workdays that drag on forever: back-to-back Zoom meetings, scrolling through Twitter and checking off seemingly menial tasks.
It was during one of those slogs that creator Dan Erickson had the idea for "Severance" (now streaming, ★★★ ? out of four), a startling new thriller on Apple TV+ that poses the question: What if a technology existed that made you completely forget about work when you're off the clock?
That may sound like a dream scenario to some, but the thought-provoking "Severance" is more interested in exploring the darker implications of what such innovations could mean for society, and more intriguingly, the individual.
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Directed by Ben Stiller – returning to TV after Showtime's "Escape at Dannemora" – the nine-episode season follows a milquetoast everyman named Mark (Adam Scott). After his wife dies in a car accident, Mark takes a job at Lumon Industries, an ominous corporation where he spends his days plugging away at a desktop computer in a windowless, sparsely furnished office under the eagle-eyed supervision of his boss, Peggy (Patricia Arquette, reuniting with Stiller after her award-winning "Dannemora" turn).
What Mark and his co-workers – the jocular Dylan (Zach Cherry) and anxious Irving (John Turturro) – do all day isn't really important at the outset, nor would they be able to tell you. When they were hired by Lumon, they agreed to have their brains "severed," or implanted with a mind-altering microchip, so when they punch out and go home, they remember nothing of their workday at Lumon. Similarly, when they arrive at the office every morning, they have no idea where they come from, whom they know, or what they enjoy outside work.
There are, of course, cracks in the facade. When Mark's co-worker Petey (Yul Vázquez) vanishes, Lumon hires a newly severed woman named Helly (the excellent Britt Lower) to replace him. But almost immediately, Helly is uncomfortable with their insidious workplace, inspiring Mark to start asking questions about what kind of operation Lumon is, exactly.
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"Severance" is reminiscent of other twisty sci-fi series including Amazon's "Homecoming" and Netflix's "Black Mirror," both of which feature ordinary people mixed up in shadowy corporate conspiracies, and examine the human cost of technological advancement. Erickson's show isn't as instantly compelling as its predecessors, but benefits from rich world-building and droll humor about office perks and morale. (Dylan is working toward winning his very own Lumon-sponsored waffle party.)
Stiller, who's best known for acting in comedies such as "Zoolander," also emerges as one of the more visually exciting directors working on television, creating a stylishly bleak corporate hellscape awash in greens and blues. Erica Freed Marker's trippy editing and Theodore Shapiro's haunting score contribute to the show's increasingly uneasy mood, as Mark's professional and personal memories begin to overlap.
"Severance" is at its best and most revealing when it grapples with the more existential issues of its brainwashing technology, especially in how it affects relationships. Irving finds mutual attraction with the gentle Burt (Christopher Walken), a Lumon employee in another department. But neither man knows if they have partners at home. Nor would they recognize each other once outside – given that office elevators essentially wipe employees' memories – meaning that a full connection between them is tragically unattainable.
Similarly, Mark uses the severance procedure as a crutch to forget his dead wife, if only for eight-hour stretches each day. As a result, Mark's waking hours at home are consumed with grief, and he finds it difficult to interact with casual friends and potential dates.
"Severance" examines the gray areas of work-life balance, showing how those lines can blur when you sell your soul in service of a company's bottom line. But it also asks viewers to consider whether it's possible to be a whole person when you live two separate lives.
"Do you ever think that maybe the best way to deal with a (messed) up situation in your life isn't just to shut your brain off half the time?" Petey's daughter (Cassidy Layton) asks Mark midway through the season.
In "Severance," as in life, you halve to have pain in order to truly appreciate happiness.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Severance' review: Apple TV sci-fi thriller probes work-life balance
