The Lost Patient – Netflix Review (3/5)

THE LOST PATIENT on Netflix is a new thriller mystery from France (org. title: Le patient). The ending will probably divide viewers, but with a 92-minute runtime, it’s worth watching. Read our full The Lost Patient movie review here!

THE LOST PATIENT is a new Netflix thriller mystery from France (org. title: Le patient). Obviously, the mystery part implies that there’s is something for the audience to figure out and try to guess. Some will guess it in advance and others can enjoy the twist.

It’s based on the comic by Timothé Le Boucher, so if you’re familiar with this, you’ll know what’s up. With a runtime of just 92 minutes, this French thriller mystery is worth watching for any genre fan. Just know that the ending will probably be a hit or miss for you.

Continue reading our The Lost Patient movie review below. Find it on Netflix from November 25, 2022.

A very simple and intriguing premise

When the 19-year-old Thomas wakes up in a hospital, three years have gone by while he’s been in a coma. Since this is a thriller mystery and the title is The Lost Patient, it should come as no surprise, that Thomas doesn’t remember anything.

Or rather, he knows who he is and other basic information. However, he does not know what happened on the night he slipped into a coma. It’s up to the psychologist Anna to break the devastating news to him that his family has been murdered.

Thomas is the only survivor, while his parents and cousin died on that fateful night. All Thomas wants to know is where his sister Laura is – he is told she went missing that night. With the psychologist, Thomas struggles to piece together his fragmented memories to unmask the murderer and find Laura.

As Thomas, we see a very strong and believable performance from the newcomer Txomin Vergez. This is his very first IMDb credit, which makes for an extremely impressive debut. Laura is portrayed by Rebecca Williams who you might recognize from the Netflix crime fantasy series The 7 Lives of Léa.

In a small role, we also see British actor Alex Lawther (Ghost Stories, Black Mirror) as another patient going through rehabilitation. Having been in a coma for three years has taken its toll on Thomas’s body, so we see him go through recovery in both a physical and psychological sense.

Did you guess the Netflix thriller The Lost Patient ending?

Whatever is the case for you, the ending of The Lost Patient on Netflix will undoubtedly divide viewers.

Some will find it genius, but others won’t be as impressed. I’m in the latter group due to calling it very early on, which is absolutely a side effect of watching so many thrillers, sci-fi, and horror mysteries. Much more than it is a comment on The Lost Patient plot and ending in general.

I do, however, feel that it’s been done before (quite a few times) and that the actual plot twist of The Lost Patient feels quite a bit forced. You have to accept that you do essentially get lied to along the way.

Whenever this is the case, it’s not so much a matter of “Can you figure it out?!” as it is “Can you tell when we’re lying to you?!”. I’ve seen similar plot twists done in far more elegant ways. It can definitely work, but in the case of The Lost Patient, the ending only truly works to a point.

Watch The Lost Patient on Netflix now!

Christophe Charrier is the director of this latest Netflix thriller mystery. He is also one of the screenplay writers along with Elodie Namer, who co-wrote the 2020 movie Miss with its director Ruben Alves. This is technically a TV Movie since it was made for the French channel Arte, but it feels like a Netflix movie.

The original title is Le patient which translates as simply “The Patient”, so the international English title has added a little mystery there already. As mentioned earlier, this movie is based on the comic by Timothé Le Boucher. I’m not familiar with the comic, but if you are, there won’t be much to the mystery.

As an entertaining movie for a Friday night, The Lost Patient works really well, but that’s about it. The movie as a whole lacks some elegance to really leave a lasting impression. Well, it did for me anyway, since the ending wasn’t much of a surprise, and the reveal of the plot twist felt too forced.

The Lost Patient is on Netflix from November 25, 2022.

Details

Director: Christophe Charrier
Writers: Elodie Namer, Christophe Charrier
Stars: Txomin Vergez, Clotilde Hesme, Rebecca Williams, Audrey Dana, Alex Lawther, Stéphane Rideau, Matthieu Lucci, Karine Martin-Prevel