Title: A Dangerous Method Director: David Cronenberg Starring: Kiera Knightley, Viggo Mortensen, Michael Fassbender, Vincent Cassel Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Studio: Sony Pictures Classic Genre(s): Drama Rated:       (For sexual content and brief language)

CONSUMER ADVICE

Parents, there is some strong language and talk of sexual acts. Recommended for ages 17 and up.

Earlier this year I saw Steve McQueen's “Shame,” which not only had a sympathetic look at a sex addict, it openly questioned why the subject was so taboo that we couldn't even talk about it. Now I have just seen David Cronenberg's “A Dangerous Method” which is akin to sitting in a room with a couple of old men who can't do anything but talk about sex. It's interesting that both movies star Michael Fassbender, who now seems to be taking on both sides of the issue at hand. Here he plays Carl Jung, a doctor who is specializing in the practice of psychoanalyses that Sigmund Freud (Viggo Mortensen) has been campaigning for as an effect use to cure insanity.

The method is controversial but it does help at least one patient in the form of Sabina Spielrein (Kiera Knightley), who can't think straight because she was sexually abused by her father when she was younger and is ashamed to admit she liked it. The problem with psychoanalyses is that it requires the doctor to get into the patients head and engage in their life while being emotionally disconnected. I've found most of Cronenberg's films to be emotionally distant and this one is not an exception. But since the entire point of the movie is analyzing problems without getting emotionally attached to the person, can I claim the movie is bad because it does a good job in portraying that very thing?

Truth be told, watching movies to judge them is very similar. There are some movies that are logically empty yet easily lovable because of the heart. The heart wants what the heart wants after all, and there's no justifying sometimes why “Gone in 60 Seconds” gets two stars from me while “Fast Five” gets three. Analytically speaking they are both pretty much the same thing, but I just enjoyed the latter more. Because of the timing I suppose “A Dangerous Method” is also going to be unfairly compared to “Shame” because of the subject matter and leading actor. “Shame” is the better movie because fewer dialogs mean more emotions sometimes. But “A Dangerous Method” is interesting in its own way.

We see characters have long, meaningful conversations that include the most brutal of observations involved with one another. Do they even realize that they study problems so much they are missing the humanity behind them? They talk about what causes sexual pleasure and insecurity, but they never seem to know whether or not they enjoy sex when they actually do it. Both men's relationship with each other is strained because of Sabina, who throws a curve ball towards both men that causes them to rethink how they think about sexually abused patients and how they actually feel about them.

“A Dangerous Method” is very open about these subjects and gives us much to think about…just maybe not much to care. The dialog is always engaging despite the fact that these characters seem to talk in circles so they can avoid dealing with real feelings. Cronenberg has filmed this in such a way that I walked out interested in the ideas but not caring so much about the characters who spoke of the ideas. Though, since that was the point, would it be fair to hold that against the film. Maybe I need to analyze my own methods of how I review movies like this, take a step back, and maybe the bigger picture will become much less clear.

Note: The MPAA gave “Shame” an NC-17 which had little graphic dialog but heavy emotion behind it. “A Dangerous Method” is rated R despite having very explicit sexual dialog yet has far fewer emotions behind it. Maybe the board members themselves need to learn how to properly divorce fact and emotion themselves?

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