A Dangerous Method

Despite its strong cast, esteemed director (David Cronenberg), and intriguing subject matter, A Dangerous Method just doesn't feel dangerous enough. In fact, it's a little dull. The film explores the relationship between psychology pioneer Carl Jung (Michael Fassbender); his patient, lover, and eventual peer, Sabina Spielrein (Keira Knightley); and his mentor, Sigmund Freud (Viggo Mortensen). Spielrein is introduced as a hysterical teen, and Jung decides to put Freud's "talking cure" into practice in an effort to reach her. The married Jung eventually develops an attraction to Spielrein, at which point another patient, the brilliant but craven Otto Gross (Vincent Cassel), helps persuade Jung to act on his desires. Even as Spielrein goes on to a distinguished medical career, Knightley continues to play her as though the slightest upset could send her spiraling into madness. Mortensen portrays Freud with an appropriately dry wit, but Fassbender is the lead, and, despite the drama of his tensions with Freud and Spielrein, this Jung feels more like a series of key life moments than a full-blooded character. Knightley's unhinged performance can be unsettling to watch, and the subject matter is perverse enough that perhaps Cronenberg felt it best to underplay its inherent unseemliness, but the result feels a bit stolid, particularly in light of his dark, moody standards.