Paranoid (2016) User Reviews

Much better than reviews suggest

[paynes2001 · 8/10 · 6 December 2016]

I am frankly surprised by the negative reviews of paranoid. The series is by no means an award winner but it is very entertaining and suspenseful. Casting is a plus and settings in UK and Germany make it interesting. As for the premise: evil pharma- quite believable. Indira Varma from Luther and Robert Glenister (Code of a Killer) are well suited to their roles as dysfunctional police.I plan to source a few more with Christiane Paul who plays the German police officer Linda Felber. She was that good. To reiterate: don't be deceived by a few negative reviews.There are many worse ways to spend a few hours.

Definitely open to the idea of a second series.

Suspenseful, but warm and human

[rohinikumar-86721 · 8/10 · 18 November 2016]

This felt more like a suspenseful but cozy Inspector Lynley mystery than the newer generation of atmospheric Netflix thrillers.

Reason being there's several really interesting and well-fleshed out characters, whose decisions and actions (many of which are relationship driven) all make sense given their characterization and circumstances. Everything felt on a human level, except the ultimate source of the series' crime - which remains unresolved at the end of the season.

In the newer Netflux Crime thrillers like the Fall, the characters can be so opaque as to make both the crime and the resolution feel a bit hollow. Not so here.

I thought the Bobby Day character was brilliantly acted. Will have to look up the actors name. .

Classic Brit Crime Thriller with an international twist....

[s3276169 · 7/10 · 7 October 2016]

Paranoid is a Brit crime drama that follows the "classic formula" whilst adding in a twist, in the form of an international conspiracy.

Its hard to fault British crime series. They really set the standard for both realism and intrigue. This series is, for the most part, no different.

The story is engaging and interesting, readily capturing and holding your attention. The characters too, are rendered as real, flawed and oftentimes, fragile people.

Perhaps my only criticism is the pace of this series sometimes flounders and I felt some characters were a little redundant. In particular, the young detectives neurotic,controlling mother seems like a pointless addition.

All in all, still a worthwhile watch. Seven out of ten from me.

Promising and dramatic

[cianodwyer · 7/10 · 28 December 2016]

The reviewer who gives one star is misguided. He likes Marcella which i felt was scattergun drivel. This Paranoid show has some soul and some pathos. Plus only 2 episodes in its all very interesting and mysterious and i have no idea where its headed. Don't listen to then reviewer he likes pap clearly. The main characters in this are believable and flawed and the story is believable enough to swallow. I say the actors are good and are a good mix that work well together. Its also not eerily dark tones which is all the rage these days and was good for a show or two but now is pretentious and annoying. Anyway i like it and it has enough mix of plot, storyline and character unrevealing to keep me going.

Not conceptual, but definitely not a flop

[BeneCumb · 7/10 · 13 January 2017]

Similar to Nordic countries, over last decades, UK has produced so many distinctive and thrilling crime series that some of them are unavoidably "weaker" than others. In Paranoid, proceeding from the title and story-line, the authors tried probably to create respective mood and character development, but did not succeed in full, meaning that some scenes and dialogues seem unfinished or discrepant; moreover, the wrongdoers and apparent motives were revealed too soon. Some scenes were protracted or unnecessary, thus the number of episodes could be 6, for example.

Nevertheless, there are strong character actors present (particularly Indira Varma as DS Nina Suresh, Robert Glenister as DC Bobby Day, Lesley Sharp as Lucy Cannonbury) and the inclusion of events and characters abroad (in Düsseldorf, Germans and Americans) provides the series a broader dimension atypical to British series. Thus, Paranoid is e.g. no Luther or Broadchurch, but it excels many US series in respect to realism and performances, so it recommended to those getting along without constant shootings, explosions, and curses.

This show is great.

[armadeussexmachina · 9/10 · 14 November 2016]

Not sure what the one star reviewer is talking about, although I do respect their right to their own opinion. This show is a pleasure to watch.

The characters are complex and the play on paranoia and the psychology of the characters is a great twist, done in a very modern way. I am in my 30s, and love so many different genres. I'm not into tired old police dramas, but this is funny, at times strange, and always compelling.

I'm not saying I'm right and he or she is wrong, but I am saying don't be put off, make up your mind up, because you might love it.

Typical small town crime.

[Lukasmj · 6/10 · 15 November 2022]

Paranoid is a British crime series about a gruesome murder. One day in the small British town of Marshwell, a woman is murdered in public by an unknown man. Now the investigation is underway - who could be the killer and what could be his motivation?

"Paranoid" is just a typical low-budget crime series.

An unusual murder happens in a small town and now it has to be solved.

The format is clearly not new, but it is enough to keep the viewer well entertained for 8 episodes.

And now I am sitting here writing this Text, just to get to my 600 Characters, because every comments needs to be 600 Characters, which makes totally sense.

Gripping Drama

[toohot66 · 9/10 · 16 November 2016]

I read a lot of negativity before I watched this. Some of the negative things I can understand, but a lot of it seems like total crap. If you want realism - do not watch crime shows except for maybe on The Discovery Channel and like minded channels. Try to watch with an open mind and perhaps you'll be surprised of what you like. This had me hooked from the beginning till the end. The characters are flawed and fragile and all of them are more real than I have seen in a while. Nina is at times so annoying and at the same time so fragile - you sense she's had a tough life. And she reveals a little at a time of this to Alec as they grow closer. He's seen her at her worst and is still intrigued. His own troubled background with his lying mother has him falling for Nina's full on openness.

Despite their personal shortcomings and problems, they try to solve a seemingly straight forward murder by a mentally ill man. But it's not straight forward. The plot takes twists and turns and leads us to questioning our pill-popping society.Everybody's got a diagnosis - is both the point and the question...

absolute tripe

[petemoore-37447 · 4 August 2017]

i signed up to IMDb just to warn others of this utter tripe,a cheesy script add a ton of cheddar acting mix with 2 servings of stilton characters and voila you have this mess.i struggled through to episode 4 but only because i kept thinking it cant be this bad every episode.boy was i wrong.do not touch this stink fest with anyones bargepole i implore you,oh for the days of cracker

Kind of silly

[missclaire-wells · 6/10 · 2 November 2020]

Chasing a "ghost detective" after a murder is clunky and forced. The worst part is reducing a potentially strong female lead into a man obsessed nag. From the start she's crying over a man and almost every conversation she has outside of work is about her love life. Even when on the job. It's just a shame they made her a jealous nagging woman and not just a good detective.

It doesn't mean they're not out to get you

[AuroraLaude · 5/10 · 24 June 2021]

It's a crime drama with a tone problem. The tone problem comes from the awkward and melodramatic romantic subplot between the lead detectives, and the odd construction of Indira Varma's character, which is the fault of the writer. Varma delivers a great performance even though the bad dialogue written for her role makes her character codependent on men. The relationship between her and her longtime boyfriend is forced, in order to manufacture conflict with her detective partner, and not believable. The series would have been better served by focusing on the role corporate corruption played in the crime. Christiane Paul, Polly Walker, and Kevin Doyle offer strong performances in their supporting roles.

Why All the hate?

[flymanfish-21438 · 8/10 · 14 January 2017]

Having now watched 3 episodes I can't understand some of the reviews for this show. While not Emmy winning, the performances certainly don't deserve some of the awful criticisms - especially Indira. Don't be deceived by those who only watched 20 minutes. I thought the episodes moved the story along well and that the German detective team were first rate. Like most British detective shows, it will hold your interest throughout.Thanks to Netflix for introducing me to this genre. If it's not renewed for a 2nd season, it is at least worth your time as a stand alone mystery story. Can't wait to watch the 5 remaining episodes.

Nice plot, nice character except...

[elfishnchips · 7/10 · 11 August 2017]

Nice series but female character Nina Suresh is annoying, very immature and whimsical. Her hysterical tantrums make the series less pleasant to watch although she can sometimes be cynically funny and break the ice by speaking her mind rudely. Inspector Bobby day is the typical endearing lost and depressed cop but he doesn't drink, he "only" abuses his anti anxiety medication. The plot is good.

If cops would really be so incompetent and unfocused, they'd all be dead

[raynelanfier · 5/10 · 17 March 2020]

So. I guess it's a feelgood series... I don't know, but it doesn't represent anything serious. Suresh is quite infantile and absolutely not professional at her job. She almost comes across as dumb. I really don't know what exactly she has contributed to the entire investigation... except for being the clown of the series. It's unprofessionalism galore. Cops not being able to contain their tempers, cops going off on their own like cowboys in the Wild West, cops discussing sex, being pregnant at the most inconvenient times... I felt it to be messy and weird. The storyline was pretty ok, and somehow it felt like they were trying to imitate Harlan Coben's style, but doing a poor job of it. I know for a fact that every single actor in that series is talented. They are not to blame for this poor storyline

Watch it for Indira Varma

[bettycjung · 5 February 2018]

2/5/18. A decent crime mini-series that follows the work of a group of detectives trying to solve the murder of a GP. I basically started watching this because of Indira Varma who played Zoe, the wife of Idras Elba's character "Luther". Although she plays a totally different character here she is really good as a great female detective with a somewhat messy private life (similar to Luther's character, but not violent). Decent writing made this 8-episode worth catching. Hope there's another season.

Finished the series so: In Summary....*potential spoiler* do not read if still watching.

[rachel-activate · 6/10 · 14 November 2016]

I stuck with this to the bitter end. Very mixed feelings on this series. I think it started out promising and drew to a bit of a limp and soggy conclusion. *spoiler alert kind of* All ends tied up of course, but I just felt a bit disappointed with how the plot unfolded; the excitement seemed to seep out of it a little more each episode for me. Perhaps that was just based on my own expectations and the need for a real solid head scratching type of detective thriller. Perhaps the characters just could not be portrayed deeply enough in the time scale to provide anything more than a few quirks mixed in with cliché. Interesting subject matter though.

I actually just wanted to post to let a previous reviewer; Mark, know that...this was actually an ITV production, not BBC. Also I would highly recommend The Missing- series 2 on BBC.

All over the place

[kosmasp · 7/10 · 5 September 2023]

No pun intended - and not just meant to describe someone who is paranoid. We are talking about really good actors here doing their best with a detective story ... that could have been solved a lot earlier ... I don't mean year wise (maybe that too), but at least time wise.

Still the mentioned actors are really good (take Danny Huston for example - any twist or turn his character takes ... he makes it work) and the story does begin with a bang. It may be way too big for the show itself. On the other hand our main character played by Indira is also ... well quite mesmerizing. So flawed, yet so believable and engaging to anyone watching ... the end message is not really too surprising ... so decent effort at least overall.

Paranoid is very satisfying

[hrmhessler · 9/10 · 9 December 2016]

Classic British cop show with heart. The setting in a small country town rings true. The relationships among the detectives are warm and supportive which seems realistic for a smaller department. Each character is well drawn and the dialogue is witty and smart. For example, British crime shows can be so self absorbed and grim, but the stern, haunted detective, Bobby, is also gentle and has the ability to self-deprecate. Ditto for the German detectives and their side of the action. The crime under investigation is scary and the action is non-stop. I was completely engaged by all aspects of this show. Hope there will be a season 2.

Meh

[catalinapoliczer · 6/10 · 4 January 2019]

I love English crime shows, mostly because of how real they can be. This one looks the part but the storyline doesn't cut it. The characters routinely do things that just make no sense. It was decent entertainment but also frustrating to watch.

Decent fusion of Brit detective genre.

[paulcreeden · 8/10 · 18 November 2016]

This is not "Luther" or "Marcella", granted. But it's not "Murder, She Wrote" either. I think Indira Varma deserved better writing. She is a great talent. The love-sick puppy, Dino Fetscher's part, wore thin. Polly Walker as the pathological liar was great. Michael Maloney, Lesley Sharp, Robert Glenister, Neil Stuke. Come on. It was just fun to see them assembled for this. Christiane Paul was delightful as Detective Felber. Danny Huston put in his boiler-plate meanie. No surprise there.

I think some of the voiced disappointment about this may come from people who always expect British mysteries to be profound and moody. Shows like "Midsomer Murders" have an established place in the genre. Even the milestone "Detective Morse" blended humor and irony with serious plots. This series is comparable to some of the "Detective Lewis" series. I certainly think there is a place for this type of series in the Netflix catalog. I enjoyed it.

A fair to middling crime drama, but could've been much better.

[feeminto · 6/10 · 12 October 2020]

I really wanted to like this as crime dramas are a favourite of mine. The premise is good, the locations are lovely, there is a good cast, but the writing is incredibly poor with stilted dialogue. The actors do their best with a hokey script, but poor direction does them no favours. I've seen all of the main actors in other things where they've had a chance to show how good they actually are. It's a pity they weren't utilized better. This passes the time in a vaguely interesting way, but it could've been so much better. Having just finished binge watching the really wonderful Unforgotten, Paranoid just can't hold a candle to the best of British crime dramas.

Not great, a bit of a waste of talent

[lwio1960 · 5/10 · 19 April 2018]

Watched this recently and was a bit disappointed. The writer or perhaps the director seemed to be in a muddle. There were some good sections, Germany some of the police investigations but then it diverted into soap opera world. This must be one of the worse police sections in the world. Nina intentionally annoying, I hope, would not last a day on a real police force and as for Bobby he should have been on sick leave a year ago. Germany was good but when Nina came on I was almost throwing the remote at the tv. Worth a watch but be prepared to be frustrated.

Brilliantly conceived crime thriller!!

[sanjubhat · 8/10 · 21 April 2022]

Web series review Paranoid : streaming on Netflix #sanjuzzreviews #paranoidwebseries #netflixindia Paranoid is a Brit crime series, set in a small town in the UK where a GP (general practitioner) is brutally murdered by a masked assailant in a children's park. The local police stumble across a larger conspiracy which spans multiple countries in their quest to get to the truth. Is the GPs murder just the tip of the iceberg ... Or is there something more sinister going on. This is what the series tries to uncover.

What is also beautifully executed is that the investigations are conducted in 2 countries simultaneously leading to a beautifully conceived climax.

Brit crime series really set the bar high. The characters are real, have flaws, battle their own demons like normal people, yet are heroes in their own right.

Indira Verma as DS Nina Suresh is brilliant. Her character is strong while investigating the case, yet her vulnerabilities come to the fore while nursing a broken relationship. The British investigators and their easy going German counterparts have really played their parts well.

Eased out, without unnecessary blood and gore, this 6 part miniseries is a highly recommended bingewatch option for the weekend.

3.5/5 from me for this one .. adios 🙂

Love is in the air

[demaym · 6/10 · 29 December 2021]

A mystery thriller that should have been billed as a romance with an edge. There's a pretty wild conspiracy murder plot going on, which often serves as secondary to the main storyline - which is the romantic escapades and relationship woes that all three of our police leads are involved in. There's not one, but two separate 'boy meets girl' love stories running in parallel to the crime, so evidently the case has to take a back seat. The police find it difficult to focus on the case, or talk about it for any length of time without reverting back to the major issue - relationships and love. The personal issues of our leads are so extreme that most of their time on the job is spent harping on about their personal lives, only discussing the case when remembering that they have a job to do. What could have been a fast paced and decent thriller, in half the time, was padded out with too many subplots and filler, to the point that the writers were obviously going for the full 'soap opera' approach, rather than one of a dark thriller. Sprinkled with plenty of comedy and very annoying characters, the show feels muddled, confused and drawn out. You also have to suspend your disbelief at times as some of this is very far fetched, to say the least - despite being wrapped up in love and personal issues, the police leads are able to come up with solutions like magic and surpass all barriers with ease. In an odds defying manner, their 'lucky guess' approach works tremendously for them with striking accuracy. The notion of 'taking a punt' is stretched to the limit.

The positives - the good bits are good, the acting is fine, the murder mystery is a multi-layered and complex affair and quite different to the type of thing you usually see in British police shows. It held my interest enough to see it through until the end and some of the themes definitely provide some food for thought, long after the credits have rolled.

The ending was 'satisfactory' in terms of providing closure and wrapping up the story but there were still many questions left unanswered and the final act of the last episode felt rushed through. Pacing issues were rife throughout this whole series.

Despite all the criticism, this is worth a watch for the parts of the show that actually work. I've seen a lot worse. The review is just to make it known, prior to viewing, that love stories and the personal lives of the police are absolutely dominant in this series - it's a shame that the writers/producers didn't have the courage, confidence or desire to stick to what was supposed to be the primary plot. In my opinion, the show would have been much better without the filler and subplots - we didn't 'know' the characters well enough to care about their love lives. A generous 6/10.

acceptable premise, horrible script

[murfit · 4/10 · 4 August 2017]

The basic plot is thin and has been done dozens of times. That wouldn't be a problem, if the execution were good. It isn't.

The plot is mainly driven by silly actions. OK, it is about mental problems, but does this mean that every other person has to suffer from them? A detective has panic attacks, is frequently either stunned or out of control, but nobody seems to care or even notice. He takes drugs, gets only worse, but doesn't think to consult his physician. Instead he eats them like candy. A witness refuses to cooperate with the police, but rather goes on to tamper with evidence and kidnap and torture a suspect on his own. Another officer seems to suffer from severe hormonal problems, another is personally involved but doesn't feel the need to excuse himself. In critical situations, officers are utterly unable to deal with criminals, don't seem to be able to use a gun, or just call it in. Oh, and someone feels guilty about and another freaks about some supposedly "pornographic" photos which turn out to be pretty mild erotica. The whole thing feels like it isn't about psychiatry, but takes place in a psychiatric ward. Or maybe it's meant to be a parody, but without the funny bits.

The cinematography is good and the actors decent, considering what horrible script they had to work with. Only Christiane Paul sticks out, but in a bad way, as a completely overacted "quirky" German police officer.