English
In a funny way it´s not surprising that Canadian director David Cronenberg has come to be connected with the relationship between Sigmund Freud and Carl Gustav Jung, with his latest film, the hotly anticipated A Dangerous Method, which hits screens somewhat appropriately, at the end of summer.
The autumn is always a time for introspection, and reflection of the inner-self, as discussed in studies by Jung himself in his most key, essential works – behaviour which runs in parallel with the arrival of bad weather, which forces us both physically and metaphorically inside, and behind closed doors.
If Freud and Jung have ended up as the two most prominent figures in the history of 20th century though, it is essentially down to their capacity to show us things from a different perspective; their mastery of articulation of thought not only makes us see different sides of our conscious, but also some of the mechanisms which are behind our actions and behaviour.
In effect, our entire lives are marked by invisible, internal movements; by subconscious efforts which act like foreign, detached bodies which live inside us and dictate our actions. The conscious is only able to carry out orders which it is given from another area of our minds; a force which is at once unfamiliar, and inherently familiar.
And as we were saying, it´s not strange that Cronenberg directly addresses these issues, as with a power of aesthetic seduction which is based mainly in his ability as a filmmaker to unsettle us, in some way, they are issues which have been an occurring theme over the course of his career. The presence of those strange bodies or entities which live inside us, controlling a parallel reality where things happen which affect the course of our lives and mark them forever.
There are very few cinematic works where the role-play between the beautiful and the sinister, and the efforts of creation and destruction coming from our most intimate impulses is quite so marked. Films which give an entertaining, fascinating, and contemporary portrayal of the relationship between the side of the subconscious and the course of a life. There are however movies, books and stories which have depicted the notion of invisible and threatening forces which colonise us from within (Shivers), or about anatomical extensions of our body which mix up death and desire (Crash), potentially fatal sexual inclinations which lead to the creation of a double life destined for a tragic end (Madame Butterfly); twin brothers who function as siamese conjoined both fatally and metaphorically (Dead Ringers), altered states of conscience which take us to different spaces of being (Naked Lunch) – or parallel realities (Videodrome) – to name but a few.
Paul Oilzum
Why not let this fascinating, quality film inspire you to rent apartments in Vienna where Freud and Jung met for the first time, chatting for 13 consecutive hours.
Translated by: Poppy
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