‘The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey’: Samuel L. Jackson Is at His Best in a Searing Performance Full of Sorrow and Hope

Alci Rengifo

Samuel L. Jackson has played many roles that have elevated his status above just being a famous actor. At this point he’s a cultural icon. He’s so good that despite all the great roles with all those popular catch phrases, Jackson still manages to surprise us in “The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey.” This Apple TV limited series is actually a passion project for the actor. He first acquired the rights to the novel by Walter Mosley back in 2010. Like many ventures of this kind, it took years to find it a proper home. As a story it combines a vivid portrayal of Alzheimer’s with sci-fi without falling into cliché traps. It’s a fantasy that feels wholly plausible.

The Ptolemy Grey of the title, played by Jackson, is a familiar character more common in recent movies. He’s an aged man, living alone in his Atlanta apartment and suffering from Alzheimer’s. Ptolemy gets help from his nephew, Reggie (Omar Benson Miller), who visits daily to help his uncle with basic daily chores. But Ptolemy’s situation is becoming increasingly hard to handle. His mind slips into brief flashes of memory, many concerning his late wife and childhood in Mississippi. Ptolemy’s apartment is as scattered as his mind, bursting with roaches and waste. Inevitably, others also try to take advantage of his condition. When Reggie is killed under mysterious circumstances, Ptolemy is then sent a new helper, Robyn (Dominique Fishback), an orphan being housed by his great niece. At first, Robyn is exactly the no-nonsense aid Ptolemy needs. She also discovers Reggie had agreed to an appointment for Ptolemy to undergo an experimental drug trial by a Dr. Rubin (Walton Goggins), who claims he can restore Ptolemy’s memory.

“The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey” has the rare quality of finding strengths in being hard to classify. The sci-fi elements and murder mystery angle work more like entertaining additions to the series’ more searing drama. Walter Mosley’s story, which he adapts for the show, is really about the sheer experience of dementia. Recently, some great actors like Anthony Hopkins and Lance Henriksen have explored the theme in the excellent films “The Father” and “Falling.” What Jackson brings to the role is a performance that depends on showing some stark contrasts. The first episode is an unforgettable delivery by the actor as a man slowly losing touch with reality. We feel the disorientation of his every day existence. He may walk down the street and mistake another woman for his late wife, Sensia (Cynthia Kaye McWilliams), or endure flashbacks of violent racism he experienced as a child, but they are hard to decipher. Ptolemy has no sense of how filthy his apartment has become. The toilet looks like a war zone. He’s not a cruel or cantankerous stereotype of an elderly man with dementia. His sense of humor and joy are there, just tempered down tragically by a growing illness. It is others who are cruel to Ptolemy, from vicious landlords to other family members skimming money off his bank withdrawals.

When Dr. Rubin applies his potential wonder drug via injection into Ptolemy, Jackson then switches to a lucid version of the character. With his mind revitalized, Ptolemy is a lucid, fun, charming man who builds a fatherly bond with Robyn. Impressively, the show then avoids cheap sentimentality. Rubin’s drug also comes with some added risks. If it works then the patient can be forever grateful but there are potential side effects. Failure could mean Ptolemy’s condition deteriorates even faster once the medication wears off. All of these story elements are engaging on their own and we almost don’t need the added murder mystery. Ptolemy is determined to find out who killed Reggie, proceeding to snoop around and ask questions when his mind is clear. There’s another added layer in his flashbacks involving an uncle, Coydog (Damon Gupton), a potential lost treasure and violent racists.

In addition to Jackson’s impressive performance, Dominique Fishback deserves much attention. Lately she’s been appearing in a growing and startling roster of notable works, including “Judas and the Black Messiah,” “The Hate U Give” and HBO’s “The Deuce.” Here Fishback has great chemistry with Jackson and works at his level. She’s not the typical younger protégé of the older, wiser adult. Because of Ptolemy’s illness, she’s the one who has to take charge early on in organizing a group to clean the apartment and watch over Ptolemy during his sessions with Rubin. She also has to fend off the usual threats a young woman in her situation tends to face from males with little sense of boundaries. As the series progresses she also learns a lot from shadowing the older man in terms of gaining independence and the value of empathy. Helping Ptolemy turns into a ray of hope in a constantly disappointing world.

“The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey” takes a while to get to its more thriller-oriented aspects. In a weaker show this would probably lead to the feeling of a series that drags. Because the central theme of the story is strong, however, the other plot points can even feel intrusive. Holding it all together is the memorable, central performance. Samuel L. Jackson is an actor who has become a persona unto himself with his trademark delivery of lines verging from violent deadpan to ironic humor. He’s gone from blasting away fiends while quoting the Bible in “Pulp Fiction” to joining the roster of Marvel. This show is a wonderful reminder that above all, he is a fantastic artist who can evoke great suffering and hope. We feel for him and then root for him throughout this journey. After actors get swept up in big franchises, we need good reminders like this of the more powerful, down-to-earth experiences they can bring to life.

“The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey” begins streaming March 11 with new episodes premiering Fridays on Apple TV+.