41/31
Anthony Hopkins previously portrayed CS
Scenario
Psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud invites Professor C.S. Lewis to debate the existence of God, Freud’s unique relationship with his daughter, and Lewis' An unconventional relationship with his best friend’s mother. Lewis in Zemlja sjena (1993) 30 years before this film. Lewis is shown poring over the gospels while a woman who appears to be his wife calls to him before bed. This film takes place in 1939, but Lewis did not marry Joy Davidman Gresham until 1956. The woman was actually Janie Moore, with whom Lewis lived until 1949..
Variations on the Original Theme, Op
[last lines] Sigmund Freud: From Error to Error , the whole truth is revealed. .. Featured in The 7PM Project: Episode 19 April 2024 (2024). 36, “Enigma” Variation 9: Nimrod, composed by Edward Elgar, performed by the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra (as the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra) & Adrian Leaper (conductor) Licensed by kind permission of Naxos Music UK Ltd. Hopkins, who plays Freud, had to be hit or miss. Unfortunately, he gives one of his famous, very polite performances here.
I doubt Freud was ever that stupid
Whenever this "Freud" he opens his mouth, speaking in the same rapid, slightly eccentric rhythm that Hopkins prefers. Then he stops, thinks for a moment, suddenly makes a sad face and laughs. It was Hopkins' default style throughout his career (at least when he’s not playing Lecter), this time with a Viennese accent. My faith was also shaken at the beginning of the film when the order of two famous events was reversed for no apparent reason. On September 3, 1939, Prime Minister Chamberlain announced over the radio that the nation was at war with Germany. A few minutes later, air raid sirens sounded, terrifying the population of London.
By the way, given that CS
(It turns out to be a false alarm.) For some reason, the movie has a fake air raid that precedes the declaration of war. In relation to Chamberlain’s show, it also contains my old bête noire: A large group of psychologists listens to his historic speech on the radio, and when it’s over, the BBC announcer says something like: “This concludes the message to the Prime Minister, Minister”; — at which point someone (is it Anna Freud?) turns off the radio. No one would do that in real life when war had just been declared and urgent government announcements (and there were many) followed. Another gripe: the way the flashbacks are clumsy in the narrative they provide us with Freud’s stories. , Lewis and Anna, with a strong focus on Anna’s lesbianism. Lewis was one of Britain’s most brilliant orators – eloquent, persuasive, never at a loss for words – he is unusually tight-lipped, shy and hesitant in this film, even for someone who is polite to a venerable, dying old man.
It’s all a Freud show
Armand Nicholi’s fantasy book The God Question; one of the inspirations for this film, allows the two iconic characters to battle, with Lewis (and God) ultimately gaining the upper hand. But in this film version of this imaginary meeting, Lewis has nothing to say. At least the film is beautifully edited; it’s nice to see what Freud’s office must have looked like. Otherwise, I don’t see the point of the film. Is this just to give Hopkins a chance to do another bad impersonation of a historical figure?