Common Sense Media Review
By Dana Anderson
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Flat psychological thriller mixes therapy, sex, and lies.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 16+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Gypsy
What's the Story?
GYPSY begins in the therapy office of Dr. Jean Holloway (Naomi Watts), as she sits empathically listening to her patients' complaints. Soon, however, we see another side of her. She secretly involves herself with a patient's ex-girlfriend (Sophie Cookson) by pretending to be a journalist named Diane, near-stalking her at the coffee shop where she works and then showing up drunk late one night at her concert. She shows up at another patient's daughter's hair salon for unknown reasons. She lies to her husband (whom she fears is attracted to his secretary), worries about her possibly transgender daughter, and seems to have an alcoholic drink or a pill in her hand whenever she's outside the office.
Is It Any Good?
The what-will-happen-next tension that's at the heart of this show's storyline isn't enough to cover the show's flat emotional vibe. Gypsy's Dr. Jean Holloway is the most common sociopathic character. On the surface, she's a perfectly appropriate, dressing-on-the-side kind of woman, wife, mom, and professional. But the deep, dark reality of who she is seeps out after hours. The problem is, so what? There seems to be no conflict of conscience in Jean, no internal struggle in which she questions herself. She just goes full throttle into bad behavior with seemingly no regret. Why should viewers care about a sociopath who doesn't care about anything?
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the main character in Gypsy, Dr. Jean Holloway. What could make a character behave in this way? What does it mean to be a sociopath?
Talk about the ongoing drinking in Gypsy. This show depicts drinking alcohol as something done at every meal, every social event, and every stressful moment. Learn more about how to talk about alcohol abuse here.
TV Details
- Premiere date : June 30, 2017
- Cast : Naomi Watts , Billy Crudup , Sophie Cookson , Melanie Liburd
- Network : Netflix
- Genre : Drama
- TV rating :
- Last updated : October 4, 2022
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