There is probably no film this fall hitting the festival circuit harder than David Cronenberg‘s “A Dangerous Method.” Having already screened at Venice and Telluride, the film will play TIFF and NYFF next for what Sony Pictures Classics hopes will result in some kind of awards season recognition.
Staring Michael Fassbender, Viggo Mortensen and Keira Knightley, the film centers on the relationship between Carl Jung (Fassbender) and Russian-Jewish patient Sabina Spielrein (Knightley), which turns sexual, ultimately causing a rift between Jung and his mentor Sigmund Freud (Mortensen), but also catalyzing strong findings in regards to Jungian psychoanalysis. While there was some early talk of Knightley being a contender for a statue, Oli, our man in Venice suggested in his review another actor might be worthy of a push. “Mortensen caps off a trilogy of perfect performances for Cronenberg (and is the film’s best bet for award nods, we imagine), the other leads hold their own, at least after that awkward first reel, and it examines the creative and destructive elements of sexuality in a way that very few filmmakers would dare.” And indeed, most of the word around the film is that it’s the sort of mature drama we crave in the fall.
“A Dangerous Method” will hit theaters on November 23rd. Check out the batch of new stills courtesy of the Venice Film Festival below.