Yes, No, Maybe So: "Dangerous Method"
Tuesday, June 21, 2011 at 1:31PM In the series Yes No Maybe So we parse out movie trailers to determine just how excited we are about an upcoming movie. Today... David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method in which two very infamous doctors of psychiatry (Freud and Jung) find a perfect guinea pig in unstable Russian woman Sabina Spielrein; Psychoanalysis is born, though it hasn't quite worked out its doctor/patient boundaries just yet.
YES
Viggo Mortensen, David Cronenberg's chief muse these days, plays Sigmund Freud and their second reunion after the masterpiece A History of Violence (followed by the compelling Eastern Promises) would be enough for a sober grunted "yes" on its own. Stir the Crazy of Freud/Jung into the mix with justifiably Most-Wanted Michael Fassbender in the lead role of Carl Jung and the yes becomes as hysteric as Jung's patient Sabina played by Keira Knightley (who is obviously out to raise her game as an actress lately).
NO
On the other hand, sexual repression and experimental psychiatry aren't the easiest topics to portray without the possibility of unintentional laughs or hindsight ridicule in these arguably more enlightened times. The trailer does have a weird fallback mode in which someone says something we're to register as Shocking or Telling and... cut to: Fassbender immediately shifting his intense glance to the side.
MAYBE SO..
Though Cronenberg is one of the world's most fascinating auteurs and Viggo and Fassy two of its most genius actors, the trailer gives off the distinct aroma of Keira...
As in... this will all live or die or, rather, doze off with boredom or leap off the psychiatrists couch with abandon if she's up to her central role. I worry that they refer to her as Russian and Keira doesn't sound Russian at all in the trailer? And given that her role is extreme with the theatrics, will she be Oscar beloved or sliced up with the critics knives?
Keira The Madwoman
Keira Oscar-Clipping It.
Keira the Masochist "PUNISH ME!"
Will this feel like a stage play with the all the talking and observing in offices and bedrooms?
Will the trio of famous faces invest the heady mind games with heart, body and soul?
Will Cronenberg finally have an Oscar hit on his hands what with the true story, biographical figures and period detailing?
So many questions... so much worth analyzing.
Watch the trailer at the film's official site!
Are you a Yes, No or a Maybe So...?
Reader Comments (50)
Viggo and Fassbender? Yes. No matter what, yes.
Viggo= maybe, Fassbender=no, Knightley=yes, most likely in the leading. She's has the bigger role and bigger star power.
A History of Violence and Eastern Promises would be enough to make me want to see this, but throw in Michael Fassbender (the man is simply incapable of NOT looking smoking hot) and the Christopher Hampton adaptation factor and I'm in even if it gets awful reviews. I'm most intrigued by Keira Knightley, who showed such early promise in Bend it Like Beckham and then Pride & Prejudice/Atonement (I know they're different films, but they're so similar even outside of both being directed by Joe Wright). It's been a while since I read The Talking Cure, but if I recall correctly, that role calls for quite the large amount of histrionics, which don't always translate well to film. I would be worried about the tonal differences between those scenes and the Freud/Jung stuff, which is so academic and buttoned-up, if it weren't for Cronenberg's input as director. If there's a man alive who can make this work, by God it's him. Here's hoping it's great, and that Oscar finally notices (he, Viggo, and Maria Bello were SO robbed for History of Violence - the stairwell... that scene alone bodes will for this film).
Viggo and Fassbender...yes! Vincent Cassel with a hot beard...yes! Keira actually seems like maybe the weak point in this, but she may not be all that bad. I'll see it, for sure.
I like all three actors, I like period dramas, but that said, I'm a maybe so. I saw Knightly in the movie, The Jacket, and she couldn't clip her brit accent to save her life (the character she portrayed was suppose to be american). It was really distracting and kept taking me out of the movie. If she's suppose to be russian in this and doesn't nail the accent...it could be catastrophe. I'll wait and see if this gets good reviews before committing.
I'm a yes all the way. I believe this movie will ride on Keira more so than the two leads because as the object of their affection? lust? we as the audience will be intensely focusing on her as well.
Side note: this has to be like the 5th trailer I've seen that has used Horse Falls from Lucky Number Slevin...that has to be nearing a record lol
Why do I get the feeling that if this was any other young actress, there wouldn't be this discussion? ;)
Keira looks great, as does the whole movie.
Wow Nathaniel. I was expecting you to be more positive.
I'm a total "Yes" but indeed, what's up with Keira's non-accent? It's obvious there isn't any effort. Maybe she couldn't nail it and Cronenberg chose her not doing it at all?
That said, her acting in the trailer didn't seem half bad to me.
I think it's hard to judge her accent based on that trailer. I actually hear quite a bit of the cadence that many ESL Russians pick up when learning English in the trailer. Her vowel sounds are pretty consistent with that broader Russian sound, as well. If not full on Russian, I can definitively hear some generic Eastern European notes to it.
Keira's not doing full-stereotype Yakov Smirnoff Russian and I don't think that would be appropriate here. A more subtle accent would serve to focus the film on the action rather than on the actor pushing the action. There also isn't one Russian accent the same way there isn't one British accent or one American accent. I can't tell from this trailer what part of Russia she's from or how long she's been treated in English-language facilities to be that fluent in English.
Keira in A Dangerous Method reminds me of when Anthony Hopkins occasionally plays a "southerner"
Yes: I loved A History of Violence and really liked Eastern Promises. I like the actors and the director, and have been looking forward to this one.
No: I don't like this trailer, and it looks like Viggo is the one who may come off best, by being onscreen least. It reminds me that the last screenplay of Hampton's that I saw (Cheri) was kind of chilly and seemed to undercut the material.
Maybe so: I'll try to see it with an open mind, but I'll allow myself to like/not like it rather than being pressured one way or another.
Ooooh... and Vincent Cassel! and the writer of 'Dangerous Liaisons!' A boring trailer, but still a big YES for me.
James T -- well the idea of hte series is to find all three things and then decide which you are. so i have to lookk for iffy areas. it's a way to manage hype rather than succumb fully :)
but i'm a big yes. i like two actors, love the other two and think the director is fascinating.
Robert G --- as someone who has had Russian friends in his life, and whose best friend speaks russian.fluently (i'm very familiar with the sounds) .. I just don't hear it at all. Not that I am especially gfited in the hearing departement i should add. Maybe i'm missing something or these are just not the most obvious dialogue scenes in which to hear it.
But I didn't know enough about the real character to know she was Russian but then the trailer told me she was and then there wasn't a russian accent?
Dominique -- exactly! they could remake Green Lantern together and I'd go ;)
I love me some Keira Knightley, so I'm a complete yes (as if the other names attached weren't already enough of a draw). It's funny though, when they mentioned her character was Russian I started listening for the accent and couldn't hear it either and it made me think of your complaints about Colossus in the X-Men movies.
OMG YES YES YES!
I say Yes. And I could hear Keira's Russian accent fine. I think she's totally wrong to play Anna Karenina, but this, I think she could nail (re: next Oscar nod).
It's a yes to everything from me. It's Cronenberg, so the yes begins and ends there, essentially. But it gets more intriguing with the whole cast and crew who have worked on it. The trailer is an enticing piece of marketing, of course, so there's probably more commercial uplift to it than, I expect, the actual final film will have. But my appetite is whetted for it even more now I've seen footage. As I say, it's Cronenberg. The trailer had me at Cronen...
Re: Keira Knightley. I think she's becoming a better actress as her career develops. I never used to be a fan, but over the last three years I've really warmed to her. I didn't like P&P or the PotC movies, and she was clumsy in The Jacket, but, recently, in The Duchess, London Boulevard, Never Let Me Go and Last Night she's been excellent. Once she stopped trying to be the next celebrated starlet and started simply working at being a talented actress she became interesting. Her best stuff is ahead of her I think. Also, I think her and Fassbender will get Oscar nominations; Cronenberg might see one, too; ditto Hampton.
Fassbender+Mortensen in a Cronenberg movie would be a big yes, but for some reason I can't stand Keira Knightley, I think she's a terrible actress, and I particularly dislike her when she's being hysterical... (Obviously some people find her talented, but I can't see it at all.. Last movie I saw her in was Never let me go, and I felt so annoyed she made me want to scream...)
So I'm leaning towards No... The trailer didn't help, I didn't think it was very good...
after reading these comments about not hearing even the slightest hint of a russian accent I expected to not hear it....umm.....really? just watched the trailer and, well, if people think she's just talking like her normal self I don't know what to say. It's not blatant but it's definitely there.
All the people involved and then Fassbender spanking Keira Knightley? Has anyone said no? Who would've said No to Pfeiffer in her Catwoman outfit licking Keaton while on top of him, back in the day? (could a variation of this yes, no, maybe work with old trailers?)
I'm a yes. Knightley is one of those actresses who can really nail a role when she gets the chance, and hopefully working with Cronenberg will let her do it again. And Viggo and Fassy....om nom nom nom nom.
Keira is definitely attempting an accent, Russian or otherwise, which I don't mind in itself, but shouldn't Fassbender then get his Swiss on? He sounds purely British!
Otherwise I'm a hopefully so for Keira pulling it off and a definite yes for the rest of the talent involved :)
I don't know how to think. Again, Cronenberg films are always interesting to watch.
YES: Mortensen and Cronenberg are really great match. And if the trailer is an indication, Mortensen would be the first Oscarable actor of the three. Fassbender looks good, but restrained for an Oscar consideration. His role in Shame would be his Oscar vehicle -After I read the script and it's marvelous-
NO: Count me as a Keira detractor. Don't get me wrong. Before Pride & Prejudice I like her and I think she deserved that Oscar in 2006 (Also fresh and compelling in "Bend it like Beckham"), but her last efforts were erratic. Weak link in "Atonement" (Even with Garai), awful in "the Jacket" and "Never Let Me Go" and overshadowed in "The Duchess" by almost all the cast. The best part is her scenes looks too fierce and actressing (The AMPAS loves that)
MAYBE: I still think Cronenberg is overestimated in Oscar chances by many people. Yes, his two last film got three nominations, but these films are the most accesible by his filmography. AHV got a nom for a veteran who made a comeback and EP has the prospects for being bigger in Oscar terms but later only got one nom for a character actor whose last decade was his revelation. Also this film, according with many reviews in imdb, is too stage-y and to polemic (Sadomasochism, sexual humillation, kinky moments) by Oscar voters. The trailer has great individual elements but as a sum of the parts is awful. Finally, like many people said, Hampton is a hit and miss - for every Dangerous Liaisons, Carrington and Atonement we have Chéri, Imangining Argentina and Mary Reilly.
The Oscar prospects:
Likely
-Supporting Actor - Mortensen could be Plummer's biggest treath for the Oscar
-Art Direction
-Costume
-Score
Possible:
-Supporting Actress - The lead actress is packed each day. With Streep, Olsen and Mara (The AMPAS invitation means a lot for her awards prospects and the big studio behind her...) are likely for the spots, we have Dunst, Swinton, Williams (X2), Foster, Theron, Hathaway and even Close. If Knightley triumphs by the critics, the supporting is wide open and even she could win.
-Adapted Screenplay - But again Hampton is a hit and miss
Dark Horse:
-Picture - Now, with the new rule is less likely a nom in Picture
-Director - Ditto, maybe next year with "Cosmopolis"
-Actor - I believe Shame will be his Oscar turn
Keria has to go off the deep end I hope it's less Noni in Bram Stokers' Dracula/Foster in Nell/Newton in Beloved and more Jessica Lange in Frances or Jessica Lange in Cape Fear or even just a little bit of Berkley in Showgirls. This is a Yes from me and Fish Tank is a downer of a movie.
yes for the casting and the story is "interesting"(sex,period and psychology) but Knightley really needs to feed (she looks alike a skinny vampire)
I'm a yes. I too, am a bit sceptical about the historonics from Knightley but from what I've gathers its one of those roles where she's psychotic to begin with and becomes quite a genius in her own right. The character arc will be interesting to watch. After watching her in Last nIght, she's been giving more nuanced performances which I like and with Cronenberg in the mix, I'm very looking forward to what she'll do.
I'm all in. I was all in the moment I first heard of the movie. And now, this trailer. It's my 2011 Black Swan moment. Please God let this be good.
I think, taken out of context, it's jarring because most of Keira's scenes are extreme and actressy while Fassy and Viggo look relatively restrained. However, Keira plays a disturbed *but also* brilliant character who later goes on to develop her own theory of psychoanalysis, so I think her mind will gradually mature and Keira's performance will become more restrained also.
It sucks that everyone has faith in the rest of the cast/crew but so many are doubting Keira. Is it just the fact that she's playing crazy and so there's skepticism about her character, or is it her herself? Nathaniel, you may be right that she's the "make it" or "break it" for the film, but I have confidence she can carry this thing on her shoulders. People who have seen the film say she's the standout.
starfish, Keira has never played hysterical before, so I don't know how you *already* can't stand it when she plays that?
(In other words, is it the fact that there are histrionics to begin with, so no matter who was playing the character, there would be some skepticism over the performance being too over-the-top, or is it Keira? Was there this much skepticism for Natalie when the trailer for Black Swan came out?)
I love all these actors and admire the director! That's a yes!
Re: the accent. It sounds a little American, no? Maybe because the Germans have British accents? An intriguing choice, if so.
Danielle, I speak for miself:
I don't like Keira Knightley. Especially after her last efforts in "Never Let Me Go" (Horrendous performance even when her character is childish) and "The Duchess" (Looks really amateur against veterans like Fiennes and Rampling and even Atwell was more effective than her). But I don't deny a potential surprise, especially when I saw her in "Last Night" where she's very compelling (the first performance of her which I like her since P & P). I read those reviews that you said Knightley is standout so I want to see the trailer. Now, my opinion is the next: She could be a la Faye Dunaway's Mommy Dearest in a best or worst way. Maybe is my adversion to her or maybe is the trailer (Because the trailer is awful) but she looks over-the-top and histrionic. Especially her first two scenes look very distractive. Maybe with another actress the result would be the same. The trailer looks bad and the scenes look too histrionic. I don't think being histrionic is bad per se, think about Tilda Swinton in "Julia".
About "Black Swan", yes, there were people who doubt about the chances for Portman's Oscar consideration. But the film came in Venice and next the trailer and many questions were answered. Even that, without the surrealistic effect, Black Swan was an easy film to sell by the AMPAS voters.
So I assume all the people here expressing such concern about Knightley's accent think Mortensen and Fassbender are displaying perfect Austrian and Swiss accents throughout?
These people didn't hold their conversations in English. Once the decision has been made to change that for the film any concern about "authentic" accents becomes entirely pointless.
I thought she was weak in The Duchess, but brilliant in P&P, Atonement, Last Night, and Never Let Me Go (that hallway scene in the hospital was very affecting), and I have faith that she'll deliver here. Not sure what she possibly did wrong in NLMG, when it was clearly the script that gave her the short end of the stick.
And Keira is supposed to overact here: she's playing a madwoman. But, imo, she doesn't just play over-the-top; she's convincingly deranged and crazy. She looks positively hysterical in the first little bits of the trailer, but then we also get her when she’s disturbed but clearly more sane: “It excited me.” I'm not sure how else she's supposed to play it... she's going to a mental hospital for goodness sakes! I'm sure she did her research and watched how hysterics behaved.
So I don't understand the criticism of her "performance" in the trailer or what makes it laughable.
For the comment of "Never Let Me Go", I read the novel and after that I read the script, and after saw the movie Knightley was so unconvincing to me. She was out of the tone especially with Mulligan and Garfield. Maybe after read the novel, I have another perception to the role.
"She's convincingly deranged and crazy", that's not necesary true, especially for the experience in my family. Sorry, but after that experience, she played the classic mannerisms as another actor played before. Her first two scenes look very over-the-top, even like you said, laughable. Sorry, maybe it just the trailer, but she's not convincing enough in this trailer
I would say that Keira is a "YES", but her accent is just not Russian at all... her role seems great and so her performance, but her accent make me feel some "critics knives" too and the picture Keira The Madwoman is so funny (worthy of some laughs due to the "comedic" tone)! So, she's a MAYBE SO, definitely.
As for Fassbender and Viggo: YES. Two interesting actors, playing two interesting people - what could I ask for? Seems just perfect!
Overall, the movie seems to be interesting, but I would say that the sexual content may create some "no-love" for the movie or... a "LOT-OF-LOVE!".
The KK hate is interesting to me. While she's never been a personal fave, I thought she was aces in NLMG and Last Night. Leaving behind POTC seems to have, in my opinion, done for her what Nicole Kidman & Penélope Cruz experienced post-Cruise. Carry on...
I SO agree with Mareko's comment, KK has some really vocal haters ala Nicole Kidman and Penélope Cruz. I personally don't understand this since her filmography is very good and varied for someone of her age. Anyway, I think the trailer looks intriguing, her performance looks fine, but it will be interesting to watch the whole arc of her character and those pieces in the trailer where she looks deranged in their complete context.
Mareko & Aara -- i agree that Keira has a strong filmography for someone so young and it seems obvious to me that she cares about her career as a long haul career (which is always a good sign... and not something you see in, say, Scarlett Johansson)
it'll all be in the context in the movie. People always try to judge whole performances from trailers but these are just tiny snippets. If she can pull off the arc and the voice she's doing works in context she'll be fine. If it's a shaky performance, I do think she'll saddle the blame since the character is the pivotal one.
I've never been a Keira fan, but she looks to surprise everyone in this. And can I add, that I just LOVE the fact that she's being billed in front of all these top leading men? I know that she's a bigger name than Fassbender or Mortensen, but still. I didn't expect that at all from what seemed to be a testosterone-centric movie.
Oh My God.....YES YES YES. With all the talent involved I'm definitely wanting to see this. I hope it's good!!
I think Fassbender, Knightley, Mortensen and Cassel are all brilliant, and as a fan of the play, I think they suit their roles perfectly. The only question mark is the actress playing Emma Jung, but from the trailer I think she looks fine.
Personally I think Keira has nothing to prove after her work in Atonement and Never Let Me Go. She's a definitive YES for me. And as for her accent - it's hard to pick up in the trailer. But you can definitely hear it. And the fact is, ESL speakers do tend to pick up traits of the accent of where they learned English. Sabina Spielrein did not grow up exclusively in Russia; I think it's perfectly believable that the English accent would have been her model for learning English. We'll really have to wait and see how it comes out in the film, but I don't have any worries about it.
I agree with VoR, to discuss accents without mentioning that Viggo and Fassbender speak English with British Accent is strange.
Otherwise I'm a big YES
Danielle - by hysterical I meant over-the-top i suppose. I haven't seen many of her movies, so I may be totally unfair, but it feels to me like she brings this quality to many of her roles (maybe that's because she thinks characters who have a touch of insanity or excess are more interesting to play and chooses those more often).
It's difficult to explain my aversion to her, but I feel she has always the same pouty expression (even on photos). There's something physical about my aversion as well, because her thinness is disturbing me. I am not saying that this last bit has anything to do with her acting skills, I am just explaining the aversion, and why I answered Nathaniel's question that way.
If it was another actress I'd still be worried about the performance because I think this kind of character is very hard to play. But with her, I know it'll be more difficult to convince me at all. (I don't think the trailer is enough to make a decision.)
(Kind of makes me think a little bit about Helen Mirren's performance in the Last station: I could have hated it but I thought Helen Mirren was perfect. If I had seen one of her scenes out of context in a trailer, I'm not sure I would have liked it.)
My first thoughts seeing Keira in that trailer is...WHAT HAPPENED!? That looks like some bad acting...I know there are some people who think she is terrible, but she had a good run of being amazing. But recently, she seems to be regressing backward.
Bia, I agree with you in every aspect. When I saw Knightley in this trailer, my first trhought was: Oh, non. Is it a comedy? Because she's laughable. She could be amazing, but the trailer didn't make it a lot of hopes...
I'm a yes, but much less so than I was before seeing the trailer. It just looks so by-the-book and I feel like we've seen essentially the whole movie after watching that 90 second teaser.
As for the comparison to Black Swan, I'm not getting it. The Black Swan trailer conveyed a mood that roped me in. ADM is just blatantly telling me the story. Boooring.
Prior to this trailer, if you had asked me to pick this year's BP winner, I'd have said A Dangerous Mind. Now I'm not so sure...
It's a yes for me. With all the boring and formulaic Hollywood movies out there, this looks like a refreshing change. And I think Knightley is going to shine in this, she's a pretty good actress and I think she'll do great. Throw Mortensen and Fassbender in and I think you have a critical hit on your hands.
"boring and formulaic Hollywood movies"... I don't think so Jenny. Right now, films like Midnight in Paris, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and Drive are making better things and still are mainstream in Hollywood.
Midnight in Paris - Maybe a classic formula, but the development is great and the acting is good (Especially the cameos of Allison Pill and Corey Stoll)
Drive has an excellent reception in Cannes (ven won)
But for me, without the sexual aspects of the film, the trailer is boring and too over the top. Knightley looks too gross (Even the accent sounds awful)
The accents don't bother me; the British almost always retain their native accents anyway so I don't see the big deal.
To me the make-or-break aspect here is the director. He has to be able to balance the restraint that Viggo and Fassy bring with the hysterics Keira brings. Fassy and Viggo have to make their restraint interesting; I like Viggo but I think if either of them is bound to fail it's him. Fassy is aces at restrained performances. Viggo has given some great ones too but his restrained characters always have to lash out at some point.
Knightley. Damn. See, because histrionics don't equal hysterical. And hysterical doesn't equal insane. Is she playing a nutjob-turned-genius who acted that way, or is she acting that way because her character is a nutjob-turned-genius and she figures it makes sense? Because those sorts of performances are either chilling or laughable.
Knightley was good in Atonement, some scenes in Edge of Love & NLMG. She was pretty good in Last Night. But I thought she was weak in The Duchess, P&P, Domino, all of the POTC films, BILB. I thought she was awful in Silk, King Arthur, The Jacket. So for me, she's the weak link here.
It's interesting that someone brought up Black Swan. A lot of people expressed disbelief that Portman could handle that role; in fact more did that than gave her the benefit of the doubt, which is fine since she has a rocky history. Her performance carried the movie and the director had to balance that with the rest of the movie.
I'll reserve judgment, though, until I've seen this because coming out of Venice Portman wasn't getting the nods and whatnot (Kunis was) but that completely changed once the film opened. Early reviews can be helpful but also misleading.