Benicio del Toro is going native (and psycho) in his next project…
The 46-year-old Puerto Rican Oscar-winning actor is starring in Jimmy P., Psychotherapy of a Plains Indian.
del Toro stars as a Native American riddled with postwar mental trauma Mathieu Amalric portrays the Hungarian Jewish doctor bent on solving the mystery locked in his patient’s mind.
Writer-director Arnaud Desplechin (A Christmas Tale, Kings & Queen) adapted Jimmy P. from real-life psychotherapist Georges Devereux‘s study of a Blackfoot Indian who’d served in World War II. The case is cited as prime example of dream interpretation and the “talking cure,” a verbal therapy utilized by Sigmund Freud.
Reviewing from the 2013 Cannes Film Festival, where Jimmy P. debuted in competition, The Hollywood Reporter praised the film for avoiding cliches and capitalizing on its two stars: “The whole project is saved largely thanks to the subtext of ethnic discrimination that runs through the film, and two riveting central performances, which overcome a wobbly start to find emotional balance by the final reel.”
IFC Films will release Jimmy P., Psychotherapy of a Plains Indian in theaters on February 14 and through VOD Feb. 20.