- Actors: Donal Donnelly, David Burke, Peter Dvorsky, Alan Rickman, Anna Thalbach
- Directors: Roger Spottiswoode
- Writers: Dennis Potter
- Producers: Alexander von Eschwege, Andras Hamori, David E. Jones, Herbert Reutterer, Ingrid Windisch
- Format: Director's Cut, NTSC
- Language: English
- Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
- Number of discs: 1
- MPAA Rating:
- Studio: Cineplex/Odeon (Uni)
- Release Date: Aug 28 2001
- Run Time: 107 minutes
- Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
- ASIN: 6305835551
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #35,017 in DVD (See Top 100 in DVD)
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Product Description
Video Details
Charlatan, fraud...or genius? To some he was a wizard, a miracle man; to others he was a charlatan and a fraud. His theories of hypnotism were revolutionary, but he was reviled by his contemporaries and exiled from his native Vienna. He became the toast of Paris, a visionary, a Svengali--and the disgrace of the medical profession. He was Franz Anton Mesmer and this was eighteenth century Vienna. Written by Dennis Potter (Pennies from Heaven).
From the Back Cover
Who knows what secrets lurk in the souls of man? In 18th century Vienna, one man discovers the truth-and pays the price. His patients call him a miracle worker; his colleagues dismiss him as a quack. Meet Franz Anton Mesmer (Alan Rickman, Galaxy Quest, Dogma, Sense and Sensibility): physician, hypnotist, self-promoter, hopeless romantic, and man ahead of his time. Employing revolutionary ideas about "animal magnetism" and the power of suggestion, Mesmer gains local acclaim by curing his disturbed young cousin. Shortly thereafter, beautiful blind pianist Maria Theresa Paradies (Amanda Ooms) seeks Mesmer's aid, setting in motion a dizzying, doomed love affair as her cure becomes both his greatest triumph and his downfall.
In this thought-provoking film from acclaimed screenwriter Dennis Potter (The Singing Detective) and director Roger Spottiswoode (Tomorrow Never Dies), everything we know-or think we know-about the nature of consciousness is called into question. As the man who scandalized Vienna and Paris and threw the medical establishment into an uproar, Alan Rickman delivers a tour de force performance that won the Best Actor Award at the Montreal Film Festival. Music composed by three-time Golden Globe Nominee Michael Nyman (The Piano, Gattaca, The End of the Affair).
In this thought-provoking film from acclaimed screenwriter Dennis Potter (The Singing Detective) and director Roger Spottiswoode (Tomorrow Never Dies), everything we know-or think we know-about the nature of consciousness is called into question. As the man who scandalized Vienna and Paris and threw the medical establishment into an uproar, Alan Rickman delivers a tour de force performance that won the Best Actor Award at the Montreal Film Festival. Music composed by three-time Golden Globe Nominee Michael Nyman (The Piano, Gattaca, The End of the Affair).
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Customer Reviews
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another great film for Rickman,
By
This review is from: Mesmer (DVD)
...okay, I am biased. I love everything Alan Rickman has done. I did do investigation of Mesmer before watching the movie in order to know what type of character he was portraying. The entire subject was intreguing. It brings to light the inadequancies of medicine during this time. The lack of common sense is appalling. BLEEDING people??? I don't think so. He brought to light the connection between a person's body and mind. Making them work together. The blindness of Maria Theresa, obviously a result of her fathers physical abuse of her at an early age, was sad because he could have cured her, but she was taken away by the money grubbers too soon. Yes, I was enthralled and hated to see it end.
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the saddest movies ever +one of the best actors ever,
By
This review is from: Mesmer (DVD)
First, to get some things clear: the boy is Mesmer's stepson and the marriage is propably a business arrangement, as hinted by both Mesmer and his wife. As marriages were in those days.The movie then... Yes, at times Rickman's voice was very hard to hear and the plot seems a bit loose. I admit he's got the most expressive face, eyes, voice and hands in the movie business and for once they were very well portrayed. In fact, the movie seems to rely on them. I was a bit confused, too, what was the point of the movie. Was it a historical piece, romantic story - it even had some comedy, as great tragedies often have. Mesmer seems to fail, although in real life he actually did cure people. And then he said his bit about how much pain there is in the world and how he could not bare not to be able to do anything to relieve it. And there was the point; that's why Dennis Potter, already dying, wrote the script this way. Even the kissing scene, which to many people seems very romantic and sexy, seemed sad to me. As if Mesmer couldn't believe something like that really happens to him. Even the ending made sense, then. This is a man, whose heart is aching to do something good in a world filled with pain and cruelty, selfishness and ignorance, but fails because one man isn't enough. Even the one he cures isn't saved, because the world doesn't understand what he was trying to do, what he was trying to make people see. Dennis Potter's testament, maybe? Oh yes, Rickman was born to wear cloaks (see Snape and Sheriff of Nottingham) and white ruffles around his throat, Amanda Ooms is lovely and the acting and the sceneries are great. And to remind, why Rickman is so great as a villain, he gets to throw the boy down the stairs. Suddenly a burst of energy and passion, making the character even more complicated, more human - because that's what Rickman does at his best: complete, complicated, deeply human characters. It's a very different kind of movie and many may not like it, but it's well worth watching. One gets to see an actor like Rickman far too little, and Dennis Potter was an excellent writer, even if this wasn't his best script. I loved it. It was very different from the super hero and cartoon character movies. We need to be reminded of real humanity and the fragility of people this way, because there seems to be very little room for compassion, pity and understanding in today's world.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Mesmerizing Story of Early Hypnosis!,
By Gerald Kelly (Amarillo, TX United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Mesmer (DVD)
This is a fascinating movie for any student/practitioner of hypnosis or hypnotherapy. Alan Rickman is wonderful as Dr. Mesmer, the Austrian physician credited as the "Father of Hypnotism". Rickman captures the nuances of "waking" suggestion perfectly, using his voice and touch to produce trance state in his patients.(Eg. "Ladies, don't be surprised if you should swoon!") Particularly interesting is his experimental treatment of hysterical blindness which culminates in the accidental discovery that the "shock/surprise factor" is necessary to effect the desired healing. A lot of this is going to be missed by casual viewers who lack an understanding of hypnotism. But, Rickman plays a Mesmer who is, himself, struggling to understand the marvelous techniques he is discovering. His efforts fail at least as often as he succeeds. This makes him a sympathetic, if enigmatic character. Not a movie for the masses, but I loved it!
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