When a man kidnaps his son’s bully, anything can happen. It sounds like fan fiction, but we’re only talking about a new HBO TV show with Krzysztof Czeczot in the main role. Can you imagine that?

“What would you do in a situation when someone assaults your own son?” ask the showrunners of Porządny człowiek, HBO’s latest exclusive, which is a psychological drama full of cheesy twists and over-the-top acting. We follow Paweł, a respected husband, father and world-class heart surgeon. From the outside, it feels like he has everything; a perfect life, they tend to call it. 

However, everything is buzzing inside of him. When one of the schoolboys decides to bully his son, something breaks in Paweł. It’s this one situation that finally makes him break all the social conventions and become his “true self” as the show implies. Therefore, watching Porządny człowiek is like following a man embracing his psychosis (if we can even call it that, right?).

Absurdity follows another absurdity: the main issue with Porządny człowiek is that when Paweł breaks and decides to kidnap the bully, we don’t really believe in this change. He acts like a man so confused in his actions that we can’t even think he is a respected heart surgeon. Most of the situations happening in the show are also beyond belief. Instead of offering a rather believable take on someone’s anger (like the one in Joel Schumacher’s Falling Down from 1993, with Michael Douglas), we just get some tedious and repetitive action.

When Paweł decides to do a deed that will completely change his previous life, we’re interested. But, once the plot takes all the cards out of its sleeve, there is nothing fresh left. We have a feeling we all have been there before. And, we have been: it’s just another weak TV show with no spark of originality in it. It’s a pity that once again we have to conclude by saying that another show is a “bummer.”

Photo: HBO Max

2/5 stars

Author: Jan Tracz