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When the eight-part series based on the novel by Bentley Little was announced, it was already difficult to decide: “dark comedy” or “workplace thriller”? Rather the latter, because “The Consultant” is not funny. The emotionless to malicious facial expressions of Christoph Waltz and his smug way of speaking are a show again, but the story about two work colleagues who want to find out about a consultant tyrant is pretty far-fetched – how as the villain’s artificial name, Regus Patoff, suggests.
“The Consultant” is set in a video games company, the worlds overlap at times, but what’s missing is real suspense. The grotesque isn’t grotesque enough, the realistic too unrealistic – and so the series sits between all stools and doesn’t really get anywhere. By concentrating on three characters, the larger framework is missing and the operation remains alien to you. The fact that Britanny O’Grady and Nat Wolff can compete alongside Waltz is no small feat. (Amazon Prime)
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