David Cronenberg directs A Dangerous Method, a drama about the tangled professional and personal bond between Carl Jung, Sigmund Freud, and Sabina Spielrein. Based on Christopher Hampton’s adaptation of his own play, the film tracks the trio’s work from 1902 to the eve of World War I.
Keira Knightley plays Sabina Spielrein, a gifted patient who becomes a doctor and one of the first female psychoanalysts. Viggo Mortensen plays Sigmund Freud, and Michael Fassbender plays Carl Jung. The film also features Sarah Gadon as Emma Jung, Vincent Cassel as Otto Gross, and André Hennicke as Professor Eugen Bleuler.
Trailer, via HanWay Films.
The Case That Binds Them
Spielrein arrives at the Burghölzli psychiatric hospital in Zurich suffering from hysteria. Jung treats her with word association and dream analysis, discovering her condition began when her father spanked her naked as a child. The doctors recognize her intelligence and let her assist with experiments measuring physical reactions during word association.
Jung and Freud correspond heavily before meeting face-to-face. They share dreams and analyze each other, with Freud adopting Jung as his heir and agent. Jung finds in Spielrein a kindred spirit whose attraction deepens through transference.
The Taboo Between Patient and Doctor
Jung resists cheating on his wife, Emma. His resolve weakens when he meets Otto Gross, a brilliant, philandering psychoanalyst who rejects monogamy and urges Jung to indulge himself. Gross calls resistance to transference a sign of repressed sexual impulses, urging Jung to abandon control entirely.
Jung finally begins an affair with Spielrein, including rudimentary bondage and spanking. Things grow more tangled as he serves as advisor to her dissertation and publishes his studies.
What Works and What Doesn’t
The film’s strength rests in its actors. Fassbender and Mortensen carry the weight of the intellectual argument, and Knightley anchors the center of the story as the woman caught between two men. The supporting cast, especially Cassel as Gross, adds texture to the period.
The script leans on dialogue heavy with exposition, which slows the middle stretch. Some scenes feel more like a history lesson than a human story. The erotic content, while central to the plot, occasionally feels staged rather than lived.
The Verdict
A Dangerous Method is a dense, often compelling portrait of a pivotal moment in psychoanalysis. It handles complex ideas with care and casts capable enough to hold attention through slower patches.
| Element | Strength |
|---|---|
| Cast | Strong across the board |
| Dialogue | Dense but necessary |
| Pace | Uneven, slower in the middle |
The film is a worthy entry in Cronenberg’s catalog, though not his best work. It rewards patience and familiarity with its subject.
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