No Extremo da Loucura

I saw this film at Cinequest San Jose film festival, where it created quite a stir. Some in the audience were laughing hysterically,while other were annoyed with the outrageious social commentary. A high octane romp about how a psychologist can and will manipulate her patients and students into believing about anything that`s in her self interest.

A twisted glimpse into the world of a shrink who's hell bent on "healing" every last one of us...whether we want it or not. Jobeth Williams makes the TV set in "Poltergeist" seem downright friendly in a performance that's inventive and, ultimately, oddly sympathetic. A Grand Guignol-ish therapy session! Make an appointment!

The content and format of this film, in my opinion, are unique and interesting. The subject matter could be intense and humorous at the same time. If you watch closely, you'll discover underlying symbolic meanings which adds to the unique, dark comedic charm of this film.

First of all, I'm a French Canadian so sorry about my English and if you're not pleased I'll write in french next time. ;)

OK! This is supposed to be a comedy and seriously, I think that I only smile (and only a smile) once during the movie. So this is NOT a comedy, not a thriller, not an action. This is simply nothing, this is only a story, nothing more, nothing less.

This movie is about a wannabe psychotherapist that want to get famous and she use her own technique: The Rose Technique. Rose is her name and it stand for Reason, Origin, Separation (not sure) and Eliminate. This women is a feminist who "castrate" men that are getting on her way to success. She doesn't really castrate but this is the reel expression of the image when she cuts people's fingers/ear. Well I'm saying that because I'm studying psychology in a University, so I know what I'm talking about. Anyway, the references to psychology are really, really poor and she doesn't analyze the patient, she brainwash them.

This movie is also awful for another reason, during the movie Dr. Rose is consulting another psychotherapist but I think that the author forgot this part because this is going nowhere. Each 35 minutes we saw Dr. Rose talking to the other psychotherapist and I think that she's talking to her about the story of the movie but I'm not sure. If I'm right, the movie totally sucks. If I'm wrong, the movie still totally sucks. :) A big 2/10

This story of human manipulation and personal denial is right up there with the works of classics such as Arthur Miller or F. Scott Fitzgerald. Where else has time, setting and character been presented so vividly and in the case of "The Rose Technique" with humor? Jo Beth Williams portrays a sick person at her own craft so convincingly that she sweeps all of the truly believable characters along with her, and had this viewer saying, "She did it again and she will continue!"