The name Sigmund Freud is well known today but not so in the past. His founding of psychoanalysis changed the world as we know it, creating a new way to treat patients who might otherwise have been locked away. While he will forever be associated with that field few movies have been made about his life. The first to do so was John Huston’s FREUD, known outside of the US as FREUD: THE SECRET PASSION.
The film looks at Freud (Montgomery Clift) early in his career. After finishing his schooling in Vienna in 1885, Freud is now a neurologist and well respected in that field. But he comes to loggerheads with the head of the school, Theodore Meynert (Eric Portman) when it comes to treating what he considers “hysteria”. Freud sees a path to a different treatment which Meynert refuses to recognize. Rather than be ignored, Freud makes the decision to go to France to study under Dr. Jean-Marin Charcot (Fernand Ledoux) who has been using hypnosis to treat patients.
Freud returns home after his studies to open his own practice. He marries his fiancé Martha (Susan Kohner) and begins using adapted techniques he formed while working with Meynert to treat the neuroses of his patients. When one of his patients has a breakthrough that disturbs Freud he considers abandoning his theories and becoming nothing more than an ordinary doctor.
This changes when he meets and partners up with Josef Breuer (Larry Parks) who has had some small success with hypnosis. They begin seeing patients, in particular Cecily Koertner (Susannah York). When Cecily becomes sexually attracted to Breuer he transfers her treatment to Freud. Abandoning the use of hypnosis and instead using the techniques that he has pioneered Freud treats Cecily who transfers her feelings towards him.
While his wife has concerns about the situation with Cecily, Freud is able to discover the basis for her issues and help her to heal. Some, including Breuer, are not completely convinced of his methods or conclusions but Freud is certain he has found a way to help many.
The movie is similar to most biopics that have been made, condensing large parts of a man’s life into one 140 minute film. Patients that Freud actually treated are mingled together to form one character, Cecily. That is the nature of film. But in that 140 minutes we are given a glimpse into the beginnings of psychotherapy, to see where the ideas and concepts came from.
The question then becomes is the film entertaining? Is it worth watching for over 2 hours? The answer to that lies in the types of films you enjoy. If you want the slam bang bash up nonstop images style of film most movies today offer then no. This one will bore you to tears. If you enjoy something with a little more depth then you might enjoy this film. Myself? I was torn between the two. I enjoyed the story and the performances of the entire cast but felt it could have been cut just a bit.
An interesting note about two of the main leads seen here. This was the next to last film for Clift who had worked before with director Huston in THE MISFITS. He died 4 years later of a heart attack at age 45. Parks was hired by Huston in the hopes of restarting his career after being blacklisted in Hollywood during the McCarthyism era. Sadly this was his last film.
Kino Lorber has done a wonderful job with this release beginning with a new 2k master of the film. It features a new audio commentary track by film historian Tim Lucas, an edition of TRAILERS FROM HELL with Howard Rodman and includes the theatrical trailer as well.
Fans of Clift will want to add this version to their
collection. With only 18 films to his career it’s hard to imagine what he could
have done had he lived on.
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