"Freud's Last Session" Premieres at AFI Fest; Anthony Hopkins and Matthew Goode Praised for Performances

"Freud's Last Session" influenced by Harvard lectures, explores imagined intellectual debate between Sigmund Freud and C.S. Lewis on the existence of God; Hopkins acclaimed for his rendition of Freud's character, despite critiques of the film's plot-heavy narrative.

• Freud's Last Session, a film adaptation of Mark St. Germain's off-Broadway play, presents a fictitious intellectual debate between Sigmund Freud and C.S. Lewis, exploring their conflicting views on the existence of God. The film, boasting much-applauded performances by Anthony Hopkins and Matthew Goode, recently premiered at AFI Fest.
• The film diverges greatly from the linear two-character drama presented in the original play, incorporating additional subplots about Lewis' experiences during World War I and Freud's complex relationship with his daughter Anna, causing some reviewers to critique its time-fractured narrative.
• Matthew Brown directs the film, adding moments such as an air raid scene that drives Freud and Lewis into a church, and the exploration of Freud's unexpected views on homosexuality. Critics, however, argue the added plot lines distract from the heart of the story: the debate between Freud and Lewis.
• Despite critiques of its plot-heavy narrative, both Hopkins' portrayal of Freud and Goode's representation of Lewis have been praised. Hopkins manages to perfectly convey Freud's mental and physical state, marking another notable point in his late-career resurgence.
• Overall, while some reviewers argued that the original premise of the play - the intellectual exchange between Freud and Lewis - was overwhelmed by added subplots, the central performances by Hopkins and Goode were celebrated for their depth and conviction.

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