THE PATIENT MAN: ‘Strangers On A Tram’ & The Art Of Revenge

Kevin Ward‘s slow burn thriller is a good example of how big names and budgets aren’t always needed to create an interesting and twisted film.

After the death of his wife Beth in a car accident that left him severely injured, Tom Alexander (Jonathan Mangum) is slowly attempting to rebuild his life. No longer wanting to drive, he joins the early morning train commuters, and strikes up a friendship with a fellow traveller. Aaron Clark (Tate Ellington) helps to gradually bring Tom out of his shell after the traumatic experience, and their friendship begins to blossom based on their shared interests.

But Tom is struggling in more ways than one. During therapy sessions with an unnamed doctor (Kelsey Scott), he reveals that Beth was cheating on him prior to her death, and he struggles to reconcile this, while also dealing with a return to his job.

Returning to Normal?

We meet Tom on his first day back at work, tentatively returning to his position at a shipping company to the welcoming arms of his colleagues. They are pleased to see him return but there is clearly an implication that he is not entirely prepared for this come back.

In competition with a fellow colleague Rami (Amir Talai) for a senior position, and instead of preparing for an important presentation, Tom instead watches mindless Youtube videos at his desk – cats playing the piano, how to forge a driving license, or instead browsing the pages of a local law firm, with a focus on a familiar looking partner.

While these scenes are key in giving Tom an understandable routine, they are perhaps the weakest section – the chemistry between Talai and Mangum are good as semi-rivals/awkward colleagues – but overall the films lacks the tightness of the rest of the film. Not to mention the severe lack of a HR department – Tom clearly did not have a return to work meetings, nor is he able to hide his increasing detachment from the rest of society.

Not Just Your Everyman

Tom is not meant to be interesting. He is not even meant to very well liked – yes, he leads the narrative and mystery tangled up his wife’s death but he doesn’t grab your attention.

Instead he sits in his therapy sessions, trying to turn the questions back on to his therapist – who firmly and, in a refreshing change from a usual ‘film psychiatrist’, refuses to engage – and tries to develop a new hobby. Mangum‘s understated performance however manages to capture the audience in an interesting way. You know he’s not very interesting, yet something lurks underneath the passive surface. He isn’t a man letting life wash over him, he has a very specific plan and is unnervingly patient when it comes to the execution.

Tate Ellington is also given an interesting role as Clark, the man with more than a driving ban to hide. Moments of introspection and deep sadness are allowed to poke their ways to the surface in his micro-expressions, that wouldn’t be noticed if you weren’t looking for them. Which, of course, Tom is.

A Solid, Twisting Mystery

Writer and director Kevin Ward has talked about his Hitchc*ckian inspirations for A Patient Man, and here some of the more noir elements are allowed to come to the fore – a cyclical narrative, the slow build of unease and a main character who is desperate to right a wrong in the best way he thinks best – morality be damned.

An effective element of the film is the recurring flashback Tom experiences in lieu of dreams. A bright blue sky, the shining sun and a glimpse of red against his hand, the colours contrasted sharply with the monotone greys of his post-crash life – reminding of a better time, before he lost everything, including the reassurance of his wife’s fidelity.

With strong performances from the cast, a slow burn mystery with dead ends and unexplained avenues and possibility of disaster lurking just out of sight, A Patient Man is a well-constructed thriller which deserves to be seen not only on the strengths of its convictions, but also for what it aims to achieve – with resounding success.

And a thriller that will genuinely throw you in its conclusion is a rare thing.

Have you Seen The Patient Man? What did you think? Let us know in the comments below!

The Patient Man was released VOD in the US on January 17, 2020. For all international release dates, see here. 

https://vimeo.com/282416489