The first episode was pretty good. The show just got worse and worse each episode after the first. The writing, specifically the plot did not make a lot of sense and was not very interesting. There were a lot of plot holes. The writing for Jon Simm's character was especially terrible, the writing made his character look utterly ridiculous. There was a clear political tone to the show. It felt like they were trying to cast the working class character (John Simm) as crazy and unhinged. The whole show was essentially a smear job against working class brits as stupid and unintelligent. I'm not surprised though, the TV writers clearly have preconceived stereotypes and contempt for Britain's working class.
6/10
54 Reviews
Mediocre by British standards
russellharvy-3901715 February 2021
Disappointing as I expected better. Love British productions despite the fact that they insist on only making a handful of episodes. This one failed to impress with a somewhat inconceivable plot with many situations that just would not happen. It does disappoint that too many rate so many shows 1 out of 10 or 10 out of 10. Seriously let's get fair..not too many are ever a 10 and certainly not this one...nor is it terrible. Many of us rely on these ratings....
Watchable fiction with a twist.
asneyd8 October 2018
Somewhat unbelievable storyline of a Fathers focus or blame of the Truma Surgeon who operated on his son (suffering a stab wound). Whilst the whole storyline is over the top and unbelievable, we should remember when people suffering from mental health, add to this loss of employment, a failing marriage and then a death of the first born son, could lead to a wacky storyline like this. The acting was mostly great (I'm not an actor so who am I to judge) and the 3 episodes were long enough to be tolerable.
Very Disappointing
hargoliver26 February 2018
I found the first episode very disappointing and most unrealistic, I mean to be able to walk in to a operating theatre and pressurise the surgeon and his colleagues and then to be able to carry on afterwards blaming the surgeon. What about the perpetrator of the horrible crime, they're the ones to blame. I know the father is in shock, any parent would, but to carry on the way he is . . . . . I found that intolerable and annoying. I won't be watching the remaining episodes. Extremely disappointing following on after the tremendous 'Next of Kin'.
Great show
nholmes7215 June 2021
What went wrong?
ismarvingaye19 February 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Great cast good writer (or so I thought ). I was really looking forward to this I'm a big fan of John Simm (Human Trafffic, The Lakes etc.) and Adrian Lester (Hustle etc.) and I thought the creator Mike Bartlett did a great job with Doctor Foster. This sadly went wrong very early on . A father who's son is stabbed and dies in hospital some hours later becomes obsessed that the doctor made a mistake. That in it's self would not be a problem if the character of the father (Simm) was scripted to have any emotion other than complete indifference to the person who actually stabbed his son. When the police inform him they have caught the killer and he has pleaded guilty his only reaction is to ask if the police can prosecute the doctor. It just did not ring true. The character was not shown to have any interest at any time in who stabbed his son, it just wasn't believable . This could and should have been a very good drama if only it had any realism.
Injustice prevails..
panevi12 June 2022
How unfair..how unjust..how narrow minded approach!!!..look guys..all of you..if you think doctors can or are even willing to replace God..then you are rather ignorant or deeply sickening..
Great performances..great story..but a deeply sickening troubled father does exactly what our society doesn't need..targets the best of us..our everyday heroes..a guy whose coffee service is even questionable....
What a let down
vlatus4 March 2018
I had seriously high hopes for this; I usually enjoy watching John Simm and Adrian Lester (Hustle was a particular favourite of mine), but oh dear, this was utter garbage. The only trauma was watching it. The whole thing was so totally unbelievable and absurd, to the point of being ridiculously annoying. I got as far as part way through the second episode and I could take it no more. Plot holes, procedural inaccuracies, and unbelievable characters made it totally unwatchable.
Very good
rickobeatty7 December 2020
Irritating
andycase-7080017 February 2018
I found the father to be irritating. There's no way you can feel anything for him or the family really because it's overshadowed by actions that no one would ever take.
I understand that emotions run high but I think it's unrealistic and over the top.
I couldn't take the program seriously and got more and more frustrated at the father.
A quality drama with two superb lead performances.
Sleepin_Dragon13 February 2018
We seem to be in somewhat of a wealth of psychological dramas right now, and for fans like me there's almost too much choice. Hospital based thrillers seem to be quite popular, not so long ago we had Trust Me. Trauma is a tense thriller which manages to keep you asking the question the whole way through, who's in the wrong? It's a clever story, and you can certainly see things from both viewpoints. I eagerly await the finale, and hope I get the answer to the question that's been nagging me from the very start, why is Dan's anger focused on Jon, and not on the actual perpetrator?
Superb performances from the two lead actors, Adrian Lester is a superb actor, so good in the role, I have absolute belief in his character. I'm a life long fan of John Simm, I'd say I'm frustrated that this and Collateral are transmitting on the exact same time slot, I'd love to know his thoughts on that, but as always the charismatic Simm steals every scene, he is phenomenally talented.
Socially you see two worlds collide, and at a time where the Social Gap seems at its widest point for many a year, I think the drama demonstrates how much harder it is for the guy with nothing, up against a very powerful individual.
Gripping viewing.
Superb performances from the two lead actors, Adrian Lester is a superb actor, so good in the role, I have absolute belief in his character. I'm a life long fan of John Simm, I'd say I'm frustrated that this and Collateral are transmitting on the exact same time slot, I'd love to know his thoughts on that, but as always the charismatic Simm steals every scene, he is phenomenally talented.
Socially you see two worlds collide, and at a time where the Social Gap seems at its widest point for many a year, I think the drama demonstrates how much harder it is for the guy with nothing, up against a very powerful individual.
Gripping viewing.
Hate the Father
karenc40322 March 2018
Warning: Spoilers
I do not understand why the father is mad at the doctor and not at the boy that knifed his son. The more I see of the father the more I hate him. I ask has the trauma of losing his son made him crazy or was he already a nutcase. Is he jealous because the doctor is rich and educated and he is not. It is rare for me to not have any sympathy for a person losing a child but I have NONE for this father. The entire story is about a nutcase trying to destroy another mans life. I do not care if this man is right or wrong about the doctor I HATE HIM. The doctors daughter should have been happy her father saved her - BUT NO - she does not like her father and took the side of the nut.
Exceedingly unrealistic
evievernon14 February 2018
So, in the U.K., massively unsterile members of the public can just walk into an operating theatre and distract the surgeon without any outcry. Such absolute nonsense. Never mind the rest of it. Goes from ridiculous to complete nonsense.
So bad, I'm in disbelief
barryjames-mc16 February 2018
I had to watch this through to the end, only because I was incredulous that anything this bad could be made. The script is hilarious for all the wrong reasons, it's clunky and sometimes sounds like it was written by an utter moron. John Simm has hit an all time low, his character is an annoying, cliched, unrealistic, unlikable idiot, who somehow seems to read people better than a psychiatrist. It's so cripplingly awful that it seems hard to believe they didn't shelve it. Pointless, painful to watch, artless, drivel. Don't waste your time.
Garbage
dflanagan-4131714 February 2018
Totally unrealistic and annoying. Why doesn't the father blame the person who actually killed his son? How does he get into the operating theatre? Unless it turns out the surgeon was blind drunk then he was just doing his job and if he was then it would just be too predictable. Not sure where this show has to go.
I had no sympathy for the father which is a big failing for the show. Weird that itv would spend so much time promoting it. That's how far they've fallen.
I had no sympathy for the father which is a big failing for the show. Weird that itv would spend so much time promoting it. That's how far they've fallen.
Freaked me out.
p-seed-889-18846926 March 2018
Frankly this scared the Hell out of me, in a way very few movies or television programmes have ever done in my life. Amazingly this is achieved with no blood, no violence, no swearing, just pure alienation from normality. In many ways in this respect, and methodology, it is very similar to the movie "Funny Games" which IS the scariest movie I have ever seen.
We tend to assume that people are generally all the same. Sure we all have our personal idiosyncrasies but at our core we share a common concept of logic and operate according to well defined rules of human engagement. In Trauma we see the simple terror of encountering someone who has his own rules, who will not, cannot, engage in life according to the rules we live by. We realise just how absolutely powerless we are. After all, how do you reason with someone who has no reason?
If that were not enough in its own right we see how the various "human rights" based initiatives introduced over the last couple of decades actually encourage this type of behaviour by encouraging "victimhood". Like John Allerton's Hospital, all institutions now have processes and procedures are in place to help loonies like this extract their pound of flesh from well meaning, if sometimes imperfect, people when things don't go quite according to plan.
I see many people have rated Trauma badly because they saw it as being unrealistic and Dan as not behaving normally. I can sympathise with that view because in the first 10 minutes I felt that way myself. I assumed Dan was supposed to be a normal person and consequently within minutes I was rolling my eyes, to the extent that I toyed with turning it off. Then the penny dropped and I realised that the WHOLE POINT is that Dan is NOT a normal person, he is insane, and that is what makes Trauma so terrifying. Just how do you deal with someone whose mind works with a different set of rules? It is like coming to the table expecting to play chess only to find your opponent is playing poker. Dan is obviously extremely clever in his way, but it is his way, and not our way.
The acting throughout is superb by all parties, the storyline, scripting and dialog are superb and yes, totally realistic for a story whose main character is an insane person. It is by far the best in a dense clump of recent British Television series, most of which are inconsistent at best and riddled with flaws at worst. It has elements of Liar in that it features an irrational person relentlessly seeking harassing someone for something of which there is no evidence actually occurred, and elements of Doctor Foster, which also features a protagonist who quite frankly borderline insane in her quest for revenge. Importantly, at 3 episodes, it does not outstay its welcome or dilute its impact with irrelevant sub-stories.
To the writer and producers of Trauma - bravo and keep them coming.
We tend to assume that people are generally all the same. Sure we all have our personal idiosyncrasies but at our core we share a common concept of logic and operate according to well defined rules of human engagement. In Trauma we see the simple terror of encountering someone who has his own rules, who will not, cannot, engage in life according to the rules we live by. We realise just how absolutely powerless we are. After all, how do you reason with someone who has no reason?
If that were not enough in its own right we see how the various "human rights" based initiatives introduced over the last couple of decades actually encourage this type of behaviour by encouraging "victimhood". Like John Allerton's Hospital, all institutions now have processes and procedures are in place to help loonies like this extract their pound of flesh from well meaning, if sometimes imperfect, people when things don't go quite according to plan.
I see many people have rated Trauma badly because they saw it as being unrealistic and Dan as not behaving normally. I can sympathise with that view because in the first 10 minutes I felt that way myself. I assumed Dan was supposed to be a normal person and consequently within minutes I was rolling my eyes, to the extent that I toyed with turning it off. Then the penny dropped and I realised that the WHOLE POINT is that Dan is NOT a normal person, he is insane, and that is what makes Trauma so terrifying. Just how do you deal with someone whose mind works with a different set of rules? It is like coming to the table expecting to play chess only to find your opponent is playing poker. Dan is obviously extremely clever in his way, but it is his way, and not our way.
The acting throughout is superb by all parties, the storyline, scripting and dialog are superb and yes, totally realistic for a story whose main character is an insane person. It is by far the best in a dense clump of recent British Television series, most of which are inconsistent at best and riddled with flaws at worst. It has elements of Liar in that it features an irrational person relentlessly seeking harassing someone for something of which there is no evidence actually occurred, and elements of Doctor Foster, which also features a protagonist who quite frankly borderline insane in her quest for revenge. Importantly, at 3 episodes, it does not outstay its welcome or dilute its impact with irrelevant sub-stories.
To the writer and producers of Trauma - bravo and keep them coming.
Waste of Talent and Absolute Garbage
kaymarie-2333429 March 2018
Warning: Spoilers
The father doesn't seem to bat an eye at the boy who kills his son, but stalks the surgeon who tried to save his son's life, even to the point of holding the entire family hostage. In short, the psycho wack job is the hero. Not arrested for kidnap, hostage taking, unlawful entry, or threats. He gets his family nack in the end while the surgeon's family pretty much alienates him.
A waste of good talent on a lazy story and script. It would have been a more compelling story if he was cheating on his wife, hiding assets, and had another kid somewhere, a renowned and respectable surgeon, but a complete a-hole. Then the wack job uncovers all this, but have to come to terms that his son died of the stab wound, but the surgeon made every effort to keep him alive . DONT BOTHER WATCHING!
A waste of good talent on a lazy story and script. It would have been a more compelling story if he was cheating on his wife, hiding assets, and had another kid somewhere, a renowned and respectable surgeon, but a complete a-hole. Then the wack job uncovers all this, but have to come to terms that his son died of the stab wound, but the surgeon made every effort to keep him alive . DONT BOTHER WATCHING!
Desperation and madness
Nephelith9 February 2020
Scariest John Simm I ever witnessed. In three little episodes, you can see this broken father spiralling down to a level of desperation that makes him lose it, in a very dark and creepy yet very realistic way.
Trauma is the best series of my collection when it comes to the depiction of such characters and stories. And the short three-part format makes every episode valuable and important, no time is wasted. Perfect, that's all.
(And, with all due respect to other critics out there - you know that each individual is unique and has their own behaviour, right? There's nothing unrealistic in Bowker's behaviour, on the contrary - despair and sudden grief, especially when being already mentally unstable can screw your mind pretty badly. The fact that you didn't act like that doesn't mean no one does or no one can).
Trauma is the best series of my collection when it comes to the depiction of such characters and stories. And the short three-part format makes every episode valuable and important, no time is wasted. Perfect, that's all.
(And, with all due respect to other critics out there - you know that each individual is unique and has their own behaviour, right? There's nothing unrealistic in Bowker's behaviour, on the contrary - despair and sudden grief, especially when being already mentally unstable can screw your mind pretty badly. The fact that you didn't act like that doesn't mean no one does or no one can).
Unrealistic
nmutambo200027 February 2018
Warning: Spoilers
This has to be one of if not the worst show I have ever seen. I had no sympathy for the protagonist, he chose the dr as the aim of his anger because of his own personal issues because he felt inferior to the Dr as he doesn't make as much money. He neglects his wife and his family just to pursue this stupid vendetta. I hated him and I hated this show. How could he get into the theatre or the MDt meeting? Arg it was all about money
Great actors wasted on weird script
vwf569415 February 2018
TOTAL RUBBISH.
jmccartaig15 February 2018
John Simm (Bowker) spent the time searching for the truth whilst
constantly lying.
I think he should confront the person who is guilty of
telling him he could act.
The one star is for the house in which the surgeon lived.
Horrible
javier-bball1 March 2018
I watched all the episodes! & let me tell you! I wanted to kill the father myself! its so stupid how he wants revenge on the doctor but honestly he need Jesus in his life! If he didn't walk into the surgery than maybe his son would still be alive!!!! But honestly they favored the father to much how the f is he going to do everything he did without getting caught like seriously! Plus they don't show any resolution of what the father lies to the wife and daughter!
Good
iainsmith-1806123 November 2020
A mans son who's stabbed one night rushes to the hospital of whom the surgeon that is looking after him reassures him that he'll be ok but his life is turned around that night & he wages a one man war on the surgeon who worked on his son blaming him rather than the assailants who did this !
Very good drama which leaves you the question in your head . A worth while watch .
NotRealistic
eyedrawu31 March 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Number one: I find it disgraceful to see two fine actors, (SImms and Lester) playing a role in this boring, uninteresting film.
A. the irate father appears to be out of control yet everyone expects the doctor to be more and more considerate.
B. the doctor pushed himself into the father's life making matters worse. No professional person will bow to an out of control accuser.
C. to think that the doctor's wife did not suspect her patient as the irate father who is harassing her husband seems totally unrealistic.
D. it appears that the operation was thrown off when the father enters the operation room. I was expecting in the end that the hospital might have explained this to the father, holding him somewhat accountable. Didn't happen!
E. who, do tell, opens the door to a stranger, buys into his story, and invites him into the house??? A smart teenager? a smart therapist? I think not. This is the most unrealistic piece in this film.
F. in the end this outstanding, highly regarded doctor takes the blame at the demands of the out of control father. It is all nonsense to me.
Really good British drama
thegabyone1 August 2018
I really love British productions and I was not disappointed with this either. I found the acting very good and the story had a very nice twist to it at the end. Built like a classic short story with an unexpected ending.
thegabyone, from Sweden
thegabyone, from Sweden
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