Samuel L. Jackson in his first series, What Are the Last Days of Ptolemy Gray?

Რ About?

Ptolemy Gray, a 91-year-old man with dementia left behind by his family and friends. Soon he is offered a miraculous cure. By accepting, he will be able to briefly recall memories. He will use this precious and brief return of clarity to resolve his nephew’s death …

The Last Days of Ptolemy Gray, a series created by Walter Mosley Samuel L. With Jackson, Dominic Fishbeck, Damon Gupton, Walton Goggins … on Apple TV +

Living memory

Adapted from Walter Mosley’s own novel, Ptolemy Gray’s Last Days is a mix of genres with a touch of science fiction between drama and thriller. Ptolemy Gray, led by Samuel L. Jackson performs experimental treatments to fight Alzheimer’s disease and restore memory and cognitive functions.

The only problem is that the treatment only works temporarily and then accelerates the patient’s decline when the effect disappears. There is little Faust myth in this short deal. The reference directly suggests when Ptolemy calls his doctor, played by Walton Goggins, “Satan” and mentions the market conditions that require Ptolemy to then entrust his body to Dr. Rubin.

But the main axis of the conspiracy is the solution to the murder of Ptolemy’s younger nephew, Reggie (Omar Benson Miller), the last member of his family to care for the elderly. Ptolemy’s only goal with this treatment is to settle the case while the police are out.

Shocking portrait

To help her, Ptolemy can count on the support of Robin, played by Dominic Fishbeck, when the 17-year-old no longer has a home and family. The chemistry between these two strangers becomes the beating heart of the series, as Robin is the only one – after Reggie’s death – to treat Ptolemy as a human being, not a nuisance.

We then navigate between the different states of Ptolemy through the precise operation of the camera, blurring the frame contours and multiplying close-ups when it is completely disoriented. On the contrary, the colors come to life and the field opens when Ptolemy regains his memory and his joy.

It is a portrait in the form of a dream-like puzzle painted in filigree to illuminate Ptolemy’s past by visiting the viewer. During hallucinations, when he is at his worst, he repeats himself in a relationship with his wife, Sensia (Cynthia Kay McWilliams) in the mid-1970s. Other times, we discover his tortured childhood in Mississippi from the time of segregation and lynchings.

Like the often-lost Ptolemy, the series confuses the viewer with a lack of choice of direction, accurate and structured story (investigation, movement of people from Ptolemy’s past or the result of this experimental treatment). Nevertheless, the series enjoys a major asset: Samuel L. Jackson. Fully invested in his role, he presents perhaps the most disturbing performance in recent years.