Freud

Freud (1962)

Genres - Drama  |   Sub-Genres - Biopic [feature]  |   Release Date - Dec 12, 1962 (USA - Unknown)  |   Run Time - 140 min.  |   Countries - United States  |   MPAA Rating - NR
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Synopsis by Hal Erickson

Filmed in Germany by American director John Huston, Freud is a sincerely felt but overly simplistic biopic of the pioneering psychotherapist. The brooding, introspective Montgomery Clift was a curious choice for the role of Sigmund Freud; at times he looks more off the beam than some of his patients (his comic-opera Viennese accent doesn't add to the credibility). The screenplay takes the shape of a detective mystery, attempting to link various crises in Freud's private and professional life with his theoretical conclusions, most often doing so within well-staged dream sequences. Less successful are the scenes with the poor unfortunates who come to Freud for help, notably an embarrassing sequence with a young man suffering from an Oedipus complex. Freud was at one point supposed to have been scripted by existentialist playwright Jean-Paul Sartre, who gave up after he realized that the subject would require a four- or five-hour film at the very least.

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Keywords

doctor, hypnotherapy, Oedipus-Complex, patient [medical], psychoanalysis