Psycho Therapy: The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who... - Never Mind, Iffy Title, Great Movie

By Thom Ernst

Rating: A

Psycho Therapy: The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer is a title that reveals more plot than a movie trailer. It’s one of those rambunctious, rule-breaking mouthfuls that dares you to remember it.

It’s not succinct, marquee-friendly, or easy to pitch. There’s a pretension in a title that chews up half a paragraph.  A title that practically screams out its quirkiness—maybe a bit too loud.

Still, it’s a title that cues up audience expectations for something oddball, offbeat, and probably satirical. But enough with critiquing the title—does the film hold up beneath that attention-hogging header?

Steve Buscemi is a serial killer turned marriage counsellor in Psycho Therapy.

Psycho Therapy (my title of choice from here on) is a black comedy that churns together miscommunication, marital discord, writer’s block, and the pursuit of cultural relevance into a microbrew of absurdity. It’s a farce—but not quite a madcap one. I don’t know if a comedy can be labeled as a slow burn but if film genres had pharmaceutical needs, Psycho Therapy is on Ritalin

Keane (John Magaro) is a neurotic writer whose sense of self-importance far exceeds his body of work. Then there is Suzie (Britt Lowerr). Suzie is married to Keane, although she is more guardian than partner. The weight of Keane’s neediness is pushing Suzie into a cold retreat. Enter Kollmick (Steve Buscemi) a “retired” serial killer—retired being an odd career milestone, but we’ll go with it. Kollmick offers Keane an insider’s perspective of serial killing for a novel, not to glorify his crimes but to inspire a story with some blood-and-guts authenticity.

Things twist off course when Suzie, mid-divorce announcement, mistakes Kollmick for a couple’s therapist. And, since there’s no way to properly introduce a serial killer, no one is anxious to correct her.

From there Psycho Therapy goes off the rails—but wonderfully so. Kollmick’s masquerade as a therapist brings out the Monica & Chandler in Keane and Suzie.  Not that Killmick has any idea of what he’s doing, even Keane and Suzie aren’t convinced. But expectations play a big role in perception and before long rambling diatribes on potatoes and meditations on a stuffed cat with a doll’s arm, become effective therapeutic tactics.

The film’s most rewarding moments come when director and screenwriter, Tolga Karaçelik gives free rein for screwball banter and emotional detours. One standout scene has Suzie recounting her first meeting with Keane. It’s a stunning example of deadpan comedy where memory, reaction, and revision can switch in the span of a sentence.

With Keane, Marago strikes a balance of fragile arrogance, a man grappling to maintain relevance even as his relevance fades. His need to be admired is palpable, and the slow realization that no one’s listening anymore is tragicomic gold. You can almost see his self-worth evaporating between polite dinner-party putdowns disguised as friendly teasing.

Lower, riding high off Severance, walks a beautiful line between icy detachment and repressed rage. Her blank stares carry the weight of a woman haunted not by ghosts, but by the life she didn’t sign up for. But even as situations shift from blasé to erratic, Lower doesn’t allow her resting stone-face delivery to flinch. Think Buster Keaton on a bad date. It’s glorious.

Things get nuttier as the film moves into misinterpreted actions, gun dealers, bored and then confused hotel clerks, and a llama. But even in its wildest moments, Psycho Therapy never fully loses its sense of decorum. There’s an odd civility at play—as though the whole thing were set in the drawing room of a very peculiar country club.

Psycho Therapy is a charming return to form for the adult comedy—dialogue-driven, character-first, and delightfully absurd. A smart and silly piece of narrative chaos that earns every word of its unwieldy title.

CLICK HERE to read Bonnie Laufer’s interview with Britt Lower.

Psycho Therapy: The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer is directed by Tolga Karaçelik and stars John Magaro, Britt Lower and Steve Buscemi. Psycho Therapy: The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer opens on VOD and various platforms Weds. April 18, 2025.