I wasn’t really looking for something heavy when I stumbled onto "Maniac," a Netflix miniseries starring Emma Stone and Jonah Hill. I just wanted something short, maybe a little weird.
And that's exactly what I got. "Maniac" is only 10 episodes, but they pack in a lot: sci-fi, dark comedy, mental health themes and trippy visuals that I couldn't get enough of.
I had no idea what I was getting into at first. I figured "Maniac" would be another mind-altering show that leans on style over substance. But it really surprised me. The show is funny, sad and totally unpredictable. I kept thinking about it long after it ended, and I’ve already recommended it to a few friends who love offbeat, character-focused stories. The only problem? "Maniac" is over much too soon.
If you're into shows that are a little strange and can actually deliver on their promises of psychedelia, "Maniac" is worth checking out. It’s a limited series, so you’re not signing up for a huge time commitment — one weekend will do.
What is ‘Maniac’ about?
"Maniac" starts with two strangers who sign up for a drug trial, hoping to fix something they can't quite face on their own.
Owen (Jonah Hill) is living with schizophrenia and feeling isolated from his powerful, dysfunctional family. Annie (Emma Stone) is stuck in her own grief, angry and disconnected after a major loss. Neither of them is convinced the trial will help, but it feels like their last option.
The experiment promises to help ease their pain by targeting specific memories. It sounds scientific and simple, but that couldn't be further from the truth.
When the pills they're given take effect, Owen and Annie are thrown into a series of simulations pulled from their subconscious. These scenes jump across genres and timelines, but what matters most is what they reveal about who they are beneath the surface.
As the trial progresses, their paths start to overlap in ways that shouldn’t be possible. The more time they spend in these worlds, the more they start to depend on each other, even when they barely understand why. Why are they coming together like this? And what will happen when their paths diverge?
Why you should watch ‘Maniac’ on Netflix this weekend
On the surface, "Maniac" is about two strangers in a pharmaceutical trial, but it's much more than that. It's an uncomfortable study that explores what makes up a person: Is it their memories? Is it their experiences? Is it an amalgam of all of these things?
Hill plays Owen as someone who barely speaks above a whisper, always trying to make himself smaller in every room he’s in. Stone’s Annie is the opposite. She's guarded, angry and constantly pushing people away. They’re very different characters, but the way they slowly start to understand each other is what pulls things into focus.
You really get to know Annie and Owen like they're long-lost acquaintances. Sure, there are surreal scenes and reality-bending sequences, but they always circle back to something real, even when the dreamlike memory sequences seem just like that: dreams. How they navigate each segment is like watching a new show every time. You want them to succeed.
It's clear that "Maniac" moved others as much as it did me. Over at Rotten Tomatoes, it's holding at an 85% rating out of 17 critic reviews, beyond its 2018 debut.
The Guardian's Lauren Carroll Harris appreciated its overall message: "With grimy futuristic production design a la 'Blade Runner' and 'Alien', Maniac actually has something profound to say about the alienation of people today."
If you want a limited series that doesn’t waste your time or talk down to you, "Maniac" is worth watching. It’s thoughtful, strange, and emotionally honest in ways most shows never even attempt. And at 10 episodes, it knows exactly when to stop. It's just unfortunate that there probably will never be any more of it.
More from Tom's Guide
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
