9/13/11 5:04 PMHysteria | Review | ScreenPage 1 of 3http://www.screendaily.com/reviews/the-latest/hysteria/5032046.article
Hysteria
13 September, 2011 | By Allan HunterDir: Tanya Wexler.US-UK. 2011. 95mins
The story of how the electric vibrator was invented suggests all kinds of cinematic possibilities from aninformative, penetrating documentary to a
Carry On Climaxing
-style saucy romp. Screenwriters StephenDyer and Jonah Lisa Dyer resist the latter temptation in
Hysteria
, creating a sweet romantic comedy with asocial conscience and a sense of humour that is unlikely to offend any but the most prudish of viewers.
We may know exactly where
Hysteria
is heading but there is a good deal of fun to be had along the way.Nicely paced and neatly told, Hysteria is jolly good fun. It could never be called cutting-edge but it has a sure populisttouch and should hit the spot with a largely female audience who flocked to
Calendar Girls
and similar tales of femaleempowerment.The story is set in Victorian England where naive, idealistic doctor Mortimer Granville (Hugh Dancy) has grown wearybattling a medical establishment who fail to recognise the many scientific advances that are changing the world andmaking their old practices redundant.He is only too happy to accept a position with Dr Robert Dalrymple (Jonathan Pryce), a pioneering specialist in thetreatment of ” hysteria”, an all-purpose female complaint that he relieves with a vigorous dose of vulva massage. Hiswaiting room is overflowing with eager patients. As Mortimer grows increasingly exhausted and incapacitated (repetitive strain injury mostly) with servicing all thesewomen, he develops the notion that there must be a mechanical means of achieving the same result. His friend andwealthy benefactor, gadget-loving Edmund (Rupert Everett) becomes his partner in creating the most amazing electronicdevice.Mortimer’s professional endeavours are balanced with his romantic escapades. He is instantly drawn to Dalrymple’s bright,
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