The Strange Case of Wilhelm Reich

I'm a great fan of Klaus Maria Brandauer, I can't deny it. So I was quite happy when I heard that he headlines a big-screen release again this year, shortly after his 70th birthday. Sadly, he's toned down considerably since his 60th birthday, so one must catch every chance there is to see him. I went into the film without having the slightest clue who Wilhelm Reich was, except some very basic information I caught from the trailer. And I found myself occasionally quite confused about what was going on in detail. Unfortunately, when it came to his studies, it's definitely an advantage if you prepare yourself or know a lot about the topic anyway. Occasionally it goes pretty deep in the gray matter of physics and biology. Otherwise, it was as much fun as I hoped for watching Brandauer dig deep into the character for almost two hours, especially when Reich was interacting with all the characters that cross his path, for example bonding with his daughter. The supporting cast consists of lesser-known German, British and American actors, but is not really given much to work with. Which is a bit of a pity as Julia Jentsch, Birgit Minichmayr and also Gary Lewis have proved on several occasions in the past that they can hold their own against the big names. It's all a Klaus Maria Brandauer show and playing a character caught between reason and obsession he delivers one of the best male performances of 2012, especially if you look beyond the American border. My personal favorite was the heartbreaking scene towards the end when he's instructed to destroy the work of his lifetime.

Wilhelm Reich started out as one of the more promising members of the second wave of Freudian psychoanalysts. For example, he worked to promote family planning and birth control to the working class, which was direly needed at the time, rather than setting up a cushy practice and making a killing listening to the petty problems of the bourgeoisie, like so many of his colleagues did. Another line of his was to proclaim a connection between sexual repression and fascism, which later became a fashionable stance with the Hippies, although it's become somewhat jaded since. On the other hand, in his later life -- particularly after his emigration to the United States -- Reich also also engaged in snake oil witchcraft, claiming to have found physical evidence of a new natural energy form he called "Orgon", later of yet another energy he called "DOR" ("Deadly Orgon Radiation", sort of Orgon's evil twin). Because he built and marketed Orgon chambers and cloud busters (rain-making machines), he was eventually given a hefty two-year sentence and died after half a year in prison, probably from a heart attack. Although much of Reich's later work is pretty much patent nonsense, he has enjoyed a small but steady followership among people who are intelligent enough to know better. And now they've made this film. It looks amazing, it has stunning camera-work and A-line actors such as Klaus-Maria Brandauer and Julia Jensch (as well as the hero of my teenage years, Sledge Hammer!-superstar David Rasche). My problem with the film is that it is essentially 90 minutes of unabashed Reichian propaganda. It's the kingdom of light versus the evil empire: Reich makes rain and cures schizophrenia and infertility while his opponents lobotomize, nuke and brainwash. Great movie if you idolize Reich, not your cup of tea if you don't (or simply don't know enough about him). Four points for Rasche.

I'm a great fan of Klaus Maria Brandauer, I can't deny it. So I was quite happy when I heard that he headlines a big-screen release again this year, shortly after his 70th birthday. Sadly, he's toned down considerably since his 60th birthday, so one must catch every chance there is to see him. I went into the film without having the slightest clue who Wilhelm Reich was, except some very basic information I caught from the trailer. And I found myself occasionally quite confused about what was going on in detail. Unfortunately, when it came to his studies, it's definitely an advantage if you prepare yourself or know a lot about the topic anyway. Occasionally it goes pretty deep in the gray matter of physics and biology. Otherwise, it was as much fun as I hoped for watching Brandauer dig deep into the character for almost two hours, especially when Reich was interacting with all the characters that cross his path, for example bonding with his daughter. The supporting cast consists of lesser-known German, British and American actors, but is not really given much to work with. Which is a bit of a pity as Julia Jentsch, Birgit Minichmayr and also Gary Lewis have proved on several occasions in the past that they can hold their own against the big names. It's all a Klaus Maria Brandauer show and playing a character caught between reason and obsession he delivers one of the best male performances of 2012, especially if you look beyond the American border. My personal favorite was the heartbreaking scene towards the end when he's instructed to destroy the work of his lifetime.

Wilhelm Reich started out as one of the more promising members of the second wave of Freudian psychoanalysts. For example, he worked to promote family planning and birth control to the working class, which was direly needed at the time, rather than setting up a cushy practice and making a killing listening to the petty problems of the bourgeoisie, like so many of his colleagues did. Another line of his was to proclaim a connection between sexual repression and fascism, which later became a fashionable stance with the Hippies, although it's become somewhat jaded since. On the other hand, in his later life -- particularly after his emigration to the United States -- Reich also also engaged in snake oil witchcraft, claiming to have found physical evidence of a new natural energy form he called "Orgon", later of yet another energy he called "DOR" ("Deadly Orgon Radiation", sort of Orgon's evil twin). Because he built and marketed Orgon chambers and cloud busters (rain-making machines), he was eventually given a hefty two-year sentence and died after half a year in prison, probably from a heart attack. Although much of Reich's later work is pretty much patent nonsense, he has enjoyed a small but steady followership among people who are intelligent enough to know better. And now they've made this film. It looks amazing, it has stunning camera-work and A-line actors such as Klaus-Maria Brandauer and Julia Jensch (as well as the hero of my teenage years, Sledge Hammer!-superstar David Rasche). My problem with the film is that it is essentially 90 minutes of unabashed Reichian propaganda. It's the kingdom of light versus the evil empire: Reich makes rain and cures schizophrenia and infertility while his opponents lobotomize, nuke and brainwash. Great movie if you idolize Reich, not your cup of tea if you don't (or simply don't know enough about him). Four points for Rasche.