• Consequence
  • Music
  • Film
  • TV
  • Heavy
Menu Consequence
Menu Shop Search Newsletter
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Features
  • Live
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Contest
Advertisement
  • TV
  • TV Reviews

Paul T. Goldman Is Hard to Describe, Impossible to Forget, and One Wild Ride: Review

The bar for "weirdest TV show of 2023" has been set pretty damn high by the director of Borat Subsequent Moviefilm

Paul T Goldman Review
A-

Directed by

  • Jason Woliner

Release Date

  • January 1, 2023

Cast

  • Paul T. Goldman, Frank Grillo, Rosanna Arquette, W. Earl Brown, Melinda McGraw, Dennis Haysbert

Where to Stream

  • Peacock
Advertisement
Liz Shannon Miller
December 28, 2022 | 11:00am ET

    The Pitch: “In 2012, a man named Paul T. Goldman tweeted at me,” is how director Jason Woliner (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, Nathan for You) begins a note to the press about his new Peacock series. “He said that he had an incredible story to tell and had written a book – and a screenplay – about it. He asked for my help bringing it to the screen.”

    Ten years later, Woliner has done exactly that — though the form this story has taken probably wasn’t what Paul T. Goldman anticipated. Instead, the series is less a shocking tale of sex and crime and more a fascinating portrait of a man and his ambitions: his desire for fame, for revenge, or maybe just being seen. And seen he is, through a lens that is alternately dark, strange, bizarre, and, more often than not, very funny.

    Pieces of a Man: In trying to explain Paul T. Goldman, let’s start with the footage that makes up the episodes, a blend of reality and fiction that leans into Woliner’s background in experimental comedy projects. Each episode features direct interviews with Goldman about his life, specifically the circumstances which led him to realize that he was being scammed by his second wife (known as Audrey for the sake of the series; her real name is bleeped out for legal reasons) — a revelation which unlocked a whole dark web of additional secrets.

    Advertisement
    Related Video

    But then we also see Goldman’s version of these events through dramatic scenes that are directed by Woliner but written by and starring Goldman himself — and the series frequently ducks out of those moments of constructed narrative to reveal what’s happening behind the scenes of their making.

    For the reenactments, Woliner has accumulated an impressive cast that includes Frank Grillo, Rosanna Arquette, W. Earl Brown, Melinda McGraw, and Dennis Haysbert, and some of the most electric moments early in the series are found in watching their interactions with Goldman between takes. For on a surface level, Goldman comes off as “a middle-aged, nebbishy guy” (to use Woliner’s description from the author’s note), someone you might have no recollection of waiting in line behind at the bank. But his friendly charm warms up his more famous co-stars incredibly quickly, especially the women.

    And that’s notable because Goldman’s approach to writing the female characters featured in his story is… Lacking in nuance, is one way of putting it. While the series reveals that he has a pretty deep inner life, Goldman’s imagination has limits, mostly defined by the sort of storylines you’d find in direct-to-home-video erotic thrillers. And as Goldman’s relationships with women haven’t been the greatest in real life, there’s more than a little vengeance in his writing as a result — something which the show does not flinch away from putting on screen, enhancing the complicated portrait of a man at the center of this piece.

    Advertisement

    Paul T Goldman Review

    Paul T. Goldman (Peacock)

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
Advertisement

More on this topic

  • Frank Grillo
  • Jason Woliner
  • Paul T. Goldman
  • Peacock
  • Rosanna Arquette

Sign up for updates

Subscribe to our email digest and get the latest breaking news in music, film, and television, tour updates, access to exclusive giveaways, and more straight to your inbox.

Advertisement

Popular Stories

ozzy workday super bowl commercial

Heavy Consequence

Ozzy Osbourne, Billy Idol, Paul Stanley, and Joan Jett Star in Workday's "Rock Star" Super Bowl Ad: Watch

david gilmour roger waters antisemitic

Music

David Gilmour Blasts Roger Waters As "Misogynistic, Antisemitic Putin Apologist"

Advertisement

Stay Chill with Koast's Full Spectrum CBD + Delta-8 Gummies

Stay Chill with Koast's Full Spectrum CBD + Delta-8 Gummies

@midnight reboot late late show

TV

@midnight Reboot to Replace The Late Late Show with James Corden on CBS

elijah wood amc sightline ticket pricing seat location

Film

Elijah Wood Blasts AMC for Penalizing "Lower Income" People with New Pricing Policy

Latest Stories

Not Dead Yet Review Gina Rodriguez

Not Dead Yet Review: Gina Rodriguez Charms in ABC Supernatural Comedy

February 2, 2023

Sundance 2023 Film Reviews

Sundance 2023 Review Roundup: The Best Films We Saw This Year

January 30, 2023

shrinking harrison ford jason segel

Shrinking Review: New Apple TV+ Series Deftly Explores The Intersection of Grief and Humor

January 26, 2023

Poker Face Review Natasha Lyonne

Poker Face Review: Rian Johnson and Natasha Lyonne Deliver a Brilliant Fresh Take on a Classic Genre

January 25, 2023

willie nelson

Willie Nelson & Family Is A Faithful But Long-Winded Portrait of An American Icon: Sundance Review

January 24, 2023

Netflix That 90s Show Feature Image

That '90s Show Review: A Sweet, Low-Stakes Revival of a Tried-and-True Formula

January 19, 2023

Hunters Season 2 Review

Hunters Season 2 Review: An Uneven, But Never Boring, Conclusion to the Prime Video Series

January 12, 2023

Last of Us HBO Review

The Last of Us Review: HBO's Video Game Adaptation Is Too Loyal to Its Source Material

January 10, 2023

Advertisement

News

  • Music
  • New Music
  • Album Streams
  • Upcoming Releases
  • Tours
  • Film
  • TV
  • Pop Culture

Reviews

  • Music Reviews
  • Film Reviews
  • TV Reviews
  • Concert Reviews
  • Festival Reviews

Features

  • Editorials
  • Interviews
  • Cover Stories
  • Lists
  • Guides
  • CoSign
  • Song of the Week

Live

  • Tickets
  • Festival News
  • Tour Dates
  • Photo Galleries
  • Music Instruments & Gear

Heavy

  • News
  • Interviews
  • Concerts

More

  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Wellness
  • Giveaways

Other sites

  • Heavy Consequence
  • Consequence Media
  • Modern Drummer
  • About
  • Privacy policy
  • Advertising
  • Work For Us
  • Terms
  • Contact
  • Copyright
  • Do Not Sell My Personal Information

Download our app

  • Get it on the App Store
  • Get it on Google Play
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitch
  • Tiktok
Consequence
Current story

Paul T. Goldman Is Hard to Describe, Impossible to Forget, and One Wild Ride: Review

Menu Shop Search Newsletter
Consequence
News
  • News
  • Music
  • New Music
  • Album Streams
  • Upcoming Releases
  • Tours
  • Film
  • TV
  • Pop Culture
Reviews
  • Music Reviews
  • Film Reviews
  • TV Reviews
  • Concert Reviews
  • Festival Reviews
Features
  • All Features
  • Editorials
  • Interviews
  • Cover Stories
  • Lists
  • Guides
  • CoSign
  • Song of the Week
Live
  • Tickets
  • Festival News
  • Tour Dates
  • Photo Galleries
  • Music Instruments & Gear
Podcasts
  • The Opus
  • Kyle Meredith With...
  • Stanning BTS
  • The Story Behind the Song
  • The What
  • Going There with Dr. Mike
  • The Rome and Duddy Show
Videos
  • Interviews
  • Two for the Road
  • First Time I Heard
  • When I Made
  • Battle of the Bandmates
  • Peer 2 Peer
  • Essays
  • Fan Theories
Heavy
  • News
  • Interviews
  • Concerts
  • Premieres
  • Culture
  • Beyond the Boys Club
  • Mining Metal
Shop
  • Shop
  • Giveaways

Follow Consequence

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitch
  • Tiktok
Close
Close
 

Loading Comments...