This film is based on the book "The Fifty-Minute Hour" by Robert Lindner. And, as I watched "Pressure Point" I honestly wondered if anyone who made this picture actually did any research about how a psychiatrist is supposed to do their job. Just like "Good Will Hunting", this film shows a therapist do many wildly inappropriate things with a patient. In "Good Will Hunting" the therapist threatens to beat up the patient...and it somehow makes a major breakthrough in therapy. In "Pressure Point" the therapist wants to have a fist fight with the patient! Huh??? Did people believe THIS is therapy?
Now if I sound overly negative, I must point out that I am a trained psychotherapist...and I saw this film through a different lense than most folks...and Isoon noticed that the psychiatrist in the film asked way, way too many questions and therapy was incredibly unrealistic.
Now does all this mean the film is bad? No. The acting is quite good and Sidney Poitier and Bobby Darin are both very competent...but the screenplay just seemed very, very unrealistic...apart from the ending...which seemed pretty realistic.
Now if I sound overly negative, I must point out that I am a trained psychotherapist...and I saw this film through a different lense than most folks...and Isoon noticed that the psychiatrist in the film asked way, way too many questions and therapy was incredibly unrealistic.
Now does all this mean the film is bad? No. The acting is quite good and Sidney Poitier and Bobby Darin are both very competent...but the screenplay just seemed very, very unrealistic...apart from the ending...which seemed pretty realistic.