Freud the Secret Passion

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Freud the Secret Passion
Directed by John Huston
Produced by Wolfgang Reinhardt
Written by Charles Kaufman (story) Wolfgang Reinhardt
Narrated by John Huston
Starring Montgomery Clift
Susannah York
Susan Kohner
Music by Jerry Goldsmith
Cinematography Douglas Slocombe
Editing by Ralph Kemplen
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release date(s) 12 December 1962
Running time 139 minutes
Country Flag of the United States United States
Language English
IMDb profile

Freud the Secret Passion also known as Freud (1962) is a American biographical film drama based on the life Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, directed by John Huston. Montgomery Clift stars as Freud.

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[edit] Plot Outline

This pseudo-biographical movie depicts 5 years from 1885 on in the life of the Viennese psychologist Sigmund Freud (1856-1939). At this time, most of his colleagues refuse to treat hysteric patients, believing their symptoms to be ploys for attention. Freud, however, learns to use hypnosis to uncover the reasons for the patients' neuroses. His main patient in the film is a young woman who refused to drink water and is plagued by a recurrent nightmare.

The story compresses the years it took Sigmund Freud (Montgomery Clift) to develop his Psychoanalytic theories into what seems like a few months. Nearly every neurotic symptom imaginable conveniently manifests itself in one patient, Cecily Koertner (Susannah York). She is sexually repressed, hysterical, and fixated on her father. Freud worked extensively with her, developing one hypothesis after another. Also shown is Freud's home life with his wife Martha (Susan Kohner), whom he alternately discusses his theories with and patronizes when she reads one of his papers.

[edit] Collaboration of Huston with Sartre

Asked in 1958 to write the script by the director John Huston, Jean Paul Sartre wrote the first synopsis of some 95 typed pages. Huston accepted this, and Sartre went to work on a shooting script. Like the synopsis, it was too long. Sartre was asked to chop this first version, which he did. The result was that the revamped version was longer still. In any case, Sartre and Huston could not get along, so the French philosopher asked for his name to be removed from the credits. However, the film Freud still shows faint signs of Sartre's work on the script.

Marilyn Monroe nearly got to play the part of one of the more colorfully hysterical patients, Cecily, whom Sartre uses to superb effect.

[edit] Cast

[edit] External links

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