Wordsmoker

Two dandies in a small boat surrounded by water. What would Freud say?

Another goddamn 5 Second Review? Yes, sorry. I actually thought that this one had slipped through the theaters before I had a chance to see it, and now I kind of wish that it had. The movie was brilliantly cast, beautifully set, and skillfully acted, but the plot just plodded along like a drunken insect in a field of goo. 

I'm not a fan of the broody new acting that I've seen out of Hollywood lately, but having said that, Michael Fassbender—who has been fantastic in everything else that I've seen him in—could have done with a little more brooding. Viggo Mortensen gave much more than a competent portrayal of Freud, but for a character that's based upon a man who almost exclusively theorized about sex, he was kind of dry and stodgy in this flick. Keira Knightley was fairly flawless in her role as Sabina Spielrein. The transformation from frothing madwoman to respected psychologist was just gradual enough to be believable. That leaves Vincent Cassel as Otto Gross. Too little Gross. If even a third of this movie was Otto Gross, I would have felt entirely different about the final product. In fairness, Gross never achieved the notoriety of Freud or Jung—at least from what I can tell, but what the hell do I really know—but in this film, at least, his character was so much more interesting than any of the others.

The sex scenes were a bit overhyped. I realize that it may be outside the comfort zone for actors and actresses to perform acts of bondage and S & M for the cameras, but most audiences have become desensitized to kink. So, it's fine to have a little rough play in your films, but don't advertise it as something that will shock the viewers because it probably won't.

The bottom line is that unless you're a real psych junkie, you may also find yourself asking, "is it reasonable to go to the bathroom again? I don't want to be that jerk who keeps getting up, but I kind of need a break."