'A Dangerous Method'

'A Dangerous Method' (R) (2 STARS)

Writer: Christopher Hampton based on novel "A Most Dangerous Method" By
John Kerr
Director: David Cronenberg
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Viggo Mortensen, Keira Knightley, Vincent Cassel, Sarah Gadon

Director David Cronenberg's career has been full of indelible and shocking moments in most of his films. My favorites are "A History of Violence" and "The Fly" but I could never get into a lot of his movies. Half of them are full of images so gross and shocking that they take away from their weak stories. For example I am not a big fan of "Dead Ringers" or "Naked Lunch" because there were images that I think took away from their promising stories. That is why I was surprised that with his latest "A Dangerous Method" I wanted not necessarily shock moments but more of a pulse.

The movie has gotten great reviews but I could never get into the story of how psychologists Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud worked together to help patient Sabina Spielrein overcome her hysteria. Maybe it is just me but I was bored by a lot of this movie and I expected more intensity. This might be Cronenberg's nicest, quaintest movie but strangely I want the old Cronenberg back. I think there are moments that have potential but I wanted more intensity, the movie is too polite. Even when Jung starts spanking Sabina as part of the cure for her problem it felt to me like it was no big deal.

I like the acting in this movie and Viggo Mortensen gives a very interesting performance that works. Also Michael Fassbender continues his hot streak with another excellent performance and what I like about him is that each of his performances this year are all different types of characters and that is rare. This year each of his performances are in a different type of genre and again he is going to be someone special. Now I had a slight problem in the beginning with Keira Knightley's performance which I found clashed with the movie's tone. At first her performance is shrill and over acted but once she settles down half way through she rebounds.

"A Dangerous Method" has great art direction, costumes and a great look to it but I never got immersed in the relationship between Jung and Freud or Jung and Sabina. I found a lot of the exploration of Jung and Freud's methods a lot of mumbo jumbo and it is jargon I found boring. I guess I might be guilty of going for the "Good Will Hunting" and "Ordinary People" look at psychoanalysis. I am not a big psychology fan unless it has to deal with murder or depravity I guess. I was curiously uninvolved during "A Dangerous Method" and I am not saying avoid it because it might satisfy moviegoers who like deep thought with their movies. I usually like a deep movie but this time I couldn't get into the story.