Hudson Milbank is a successful Hollywood screenwriter who suddenly and strangely finds himself without any emotional feelings. He tries doctor after doctor and shrink after shrink, but nothing works. The Golf Channel, lesbian exercise classes and a dizzying variety of pills get him through the day, but don't quite solve his problem. His writing partner tries everything to get him back to normal, but it's not until Hudson meets Sara that he finds a real motivation to get better and to actually start feeling again. From the writer of Deuce Bigalow, comes NUMB, a romantic comedy following an unusual man looking for strange love.
Acting
Perry channels real pain through deadpan comedy—sneakily great.
Writing
Autobiographical script from director's own depersonalization experience.
Direction
Goldberg keeps the tone wobbly in the best way.
Director
Harris Goldberg
Matthew Perry
Hudson Milbank
Lynn Collins
Sara Harrison
Kevin Pollak
Tom
Bob Gunton
Dr. Townshend
Helen Shaver
Audrey Milbank
William B. Davis
Peter Milbank
Mary Steenburgen
Dr. Blaine
Ben Immanuel
Stan Milbank
Noah Dalton Danby
Tim
Monique Ganderton
Debra
Mark Acheson
Homeless Guy
Patricia Harras
Dr. Simon
Ingrid Torrance
Female Psychologist
Brian George
Dr. Richmond
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Goldberg wrote this after his own depersonalization disorder diagnosis; the doctors Hudson visits quote real specialists verbatim.
This bombed so hard it basically disappeared, but it's become a secret handshake for people who've experienced dissociation—Perry's own struggles later gave it haunting resonance.
US
