Bruce says: “Lasse
Hallström has had a remarkable career albeit an unusual one.
In 1985, twelve years into his film career, he became an overnight
sensation with the mercurial MY LIFE AS A DOG. Then
Hollywood called and Hallström embarked upon a new career.
His first Hollywood attempt was a quirky romance, ONCE AROUND followed
by WHAT’S EATING GILBERT GRAPE, now a cult classic. After a
creative lull Hallström had a trio of successes in 1999 – 2001,
THE CIDER HOUSE RULES, CHOCOLAT and THE SHIPPING NEWS. Noteworthy
is that all the above-mentioned films with the exception of ONCE AROUND
are adaptations from novels. THE HYPNOTIST is based upon a
popular crime thriller that has had great success worldwide. It
marks Hallström’s return to his native Sweden, his first Swedish
language film in 25 years.
“Set in the permanent twilight of a Stockholm winter, THE HYPNOTIST has
a mood all its own. Joona Lina (Tobias Zilliacus), a special
investigator hears a police call on his car radio and decides to stop
by the crime location since it is nearby. A sports coach has been
murdered in a high school gym. Then another group of murders is
reported – the coach’s wife and daughter are bludgeoned in their home
and a son, Josef (Jonatan Bökman) is near-dead as well.
Josef is taken to a nearby hospital but cannot talk. His talking
is the only way the case can be cracked. Lina is obsessed by the
case and demands it be assigned to him in spite of it being outside his
jurisdiction. When all attempts to get Josef to talk fail,
Daniella, one of Josef’s doctors, suggests she may have another means
of getting information. She calls in a hypnotist.
“The hypnotist, Erik Bark (Mikael Persbrandt), is a down-and-out failed
professional. He has been fired from his position at the
hospital. Hypnotism is not always successful and is regarded with
suspicion by hospital colleagues. He is addicted to sleeping
pills. His wife Simone (Lena Olin) is at wit’s end. Their
son has health problems. Erik gets the call from Daniella and
sneaks off in the middle of the night to lend help. Simone
suspects he is having a relapse – a return to his affair with Daniella
after a two-year hiatus. Soon she goes ’round the bend.
When their son is kidnapped with a message ‘No more hypnotism,’ Erik
and Simone have no choice but to pull themselves together.
“THE HYPNOTIST is not much more than a melodramatic thriller. The
performances are decent, particularly those of the two leads.
Tobias Zilliacus is a welcome addition to the big screen in a role he
will reprise next year. He is handsome in a quiet, asymmetrical
way. Mikael Persbrandt, on the other hand, has
achieved international acclaim in his recent films, Suzanne Bier’s
Oscar-winning IN A BETTER WORLD and Jan Troell’s EVERLASTING
MOMENTS. He adds depth to his titular role. Lena Olin,
Hallström’s wife of 20 years, is quite good as well.
Cinematographer Mattias Montero deserves credit for creating a
magnificent mood, a great achievement all the more impressive since THE
HYPNOTIST is his first feature film. 3.5 cats
“(THE HYPNOTIST screened as part of the Film Society of Lincoln
Center’s 2014 ‘Film Comment Selects’ series.)” |
