As we move from one century into the next, the brave hopes for psychoanalysis that were so widely held earlier in the 20th Century now seem quaint and naive. Many people, including (it seems) Alfred Hitchcock and the others involved in the making of Spellbound, really believed that by unlocking suppressed memories, people would be able to free themselves of the psychological demons that troubled them.
Today we know better. We know that connecting psychological issues with what inspired them is an important part of feeling better and doing well, but it’s certainly not a quick fix. Pain doesn’t go away when the connections are made. It just becomes more tolerable and is a step toward psychological health.
Spellbound was made in 1945, a time when the potential of psychoanalysis seemed almost limitless. Ingrid Bergman plays Dr. Constance Peterson, a young psychiatrist who is a dedicated scholar and care-giver, but who has yet to connect the grand theories with her own emotions. She’s serious, uptight and not exactly worldly. She works at a high-class psychiatric hospital that is undergoing a change in leadership. After 20 years in charge, Dr. Murchison (Leo G. Carroll) has been forced to step down as a result of his own stress getting in the way of his doing the job. This brings the famous Dr. Edwardes (Gregory Peck) to town.
Peterson and Edwardes immediately hit it off, with the propriety of an ‘office’ romance ignored in the passion of the moment. However, Peterson soon notices that her new boss and potential lover has a few psychological issues of his own. Before long, everyone knows something is wrong and Peterson needs to decide whether to follow her heart or turn in her troubled new friend.
Spellbound is a psychological drama in every sense of the word. We spend the entire film trying to guess the motivations and predict the next steps that will be taken by each character. It’s great fun trying to stay on top of this while the script gradually inches us toward an explanation of what has really happened and what deep psychological explanations are behind it.
Yes, the pat psychoanalytic answers seem all too easy by today’s standards, but that really doesn’t take away from enjoyment of this classic film. It’s an enjoyable multi-layered mystery that features strong performances by Bergman and Peck and a dream sequence designed by Salvador Dali.
The pat psychoanalytic answers seem all too easy by today’s standards, but that really doesn’t take away from enjoyment of this classic film.- Brian Webster
For fans of Hitchcock, it will be obvious that this isn’t one of his best, but, as always, the atmosphere of suspense and mystery that he creates makes the film worth seeing.- Derek Smith
