A Psychoanalytic Review of The guilty: Exploring Unconscious Guilt and Transference in Danish Cinema

The research presents a psychoanalytic analysis of Gustav Möller’s The Guilty with the psychological experience of the protagonist Asger Holm from the perspectives of Freudian and Lacanian thought. Applying Freud’s repression and guilt, combined with Lacan’s symbolic order and the Real, the analysis discusses how the interactions within the claustrophobic environment of a call center are the vehicle for addressing his repressed guilt for a previous act of violence. The research utilizes qualitative psychoanalytic film analysis, with scenes chosen because of their psychoanalytic significance, transcribed including dialogue and nonverbal communication, and coded for signifiers associated with Freudian and Lacanian categories. Reflexivity on the part of the researcher is recognized as part of the interpretative process. The minimalist story of the film and its dependence on sound cues highlight both the inner struggle of the protagonist and the transference mechanisms involved. Comparative perspectives come from recent research, e.g., investigations into unconscious cinema desire and extending of Lacanian principles to artificial intelligence, that bring into perspective the wider relevance of psychoanalytic theory in contemporary media research. This study highlights the continuing applicability of psychoanalytic theory to film research and its ability to untangle rich character psychologies within spare cinematic structures.