100 Movie Challenge 2015 - # 16: A Dangerous Method

Director: David Cronenberg

Genre: Drama/ Thriller

Runtime: 99 minutes

Year: 2011

Starring: Michael Fassbender, Keira Knightley, Viggo Mortensen, Vincent Cassel, Sarah Gadon

Description: A look at how the intense relationship between Carl Jung (Michael Fassbender) and Sigmund Freud (Viggo Mortensen) gives birth to psychoanalysis.

Review: Psychoanalysis, is that a theme for a movie. As long as you don’t approach it to theoretically. Director David Cronenberg has been fascinated by psyche and the effect of the physic. Never has the human mind played such an important part in one of his movies. Two prominent psychoanalysts go head to head in “A Dangerous Method”, being Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung. . But the confrontations between the two are limited.

Instead Cronenberg focuses on Sabina Spielrein, a Russian-Jewish patient of Jung, who eventually became a famous psychologist herself. Jung uses Spielrein as his Guinea pig to test psychoanalysis. The young woman , with masochistic tendencies, shows Jung a side of himself he never knew. Spielrein becomes Jung’s mistress and his experiences lead to a break between with Freud.

In “A Dangerous Method” there is a lot of conversation. The scenes between Mortenen and Fassbender, though minimally present, are the highlights of the film. Knightley does her very best, but somehow her weird Russian accent doesn’t really convince us. It is very brave of her to take this role, which is physically challenging for her. It would have been better to focus on Jung and Freud and especially Mortensen doesn’t get that much screen time.

With the wonderful cast and a top director, you can expect quality, but “A Dangerous Methode” disappoints. It’s not as vivacious as it could have been and because of the long dialogues it drags a bit. The moments that capture us, the scenes between Mortensen and Fassbender, aren’t present enough. A missed shot.

Rating: 2,5/ 5