SXSW Review: ‘Countertransference’

‘Countertransference’ is an odd little movie. This 15-minute short comedy by director Madeleine Olnek could perhaps be described as a ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ type of experience, except instead of Larry David playing a bald, neurotic jerk, we witness Deb Margolin playing Cathy, a homely woman with a dead-end career and no respect. When Cathy isn’t working in a second-hand, over-priced thrift shop paid solely on commission (even though no one buys anything) for a terribly inconsiderate boss, she attends sessions with the world’s least effective therapist, played by Susan Ziegler.

To say that Cathy’s therapist is the worst would be to make a grave understatement. After watching the movie, you’ll wonder who was actually needing therapy… Cathy or her therapist. All Cathy wants is a little respect and the ability to command her own life, but struggles with confrontation and is unable to speak her mind. During her various sessions with her therapist, she does manage to make a few minor unintentional breakthroughs of her own, as a result of the often demeaning, disrespectful and altogether excessively aggressive tactics of her therapist.

‘Countertransference’ has some interesting shots and some uniquely humorous moments of the type that makes you sort of uncomfortable and squirm a little in your seat. When I say the movie is odd, I simply mean that the point of the story isn’t entirely clear at first. The movie can be awkward to the point of disbelief at times, but stick with it and it pays off fairly well at the end, as Cathy ultimately brings herself to take a relatively small step, but a step all the same in the right direction.

[Overall: 3 stars out of 5]