Product Description

The lobotomy was hailed by The New York Times as a "surgery of the soul", a landmark medical procedure promising hope to mentally ill patients. Championed by neurologist Walter J. Freeman, this "last resort" caught on fast. A decade later, Freeman was decried as a moral monster and the lobotomy as a barbaric mistake of modern medicine. This program tells the gripping tale of medical intervention gone awry.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #54974 in DVD
• Released on: 2008-02-12
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.77:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 60 minutes

Customer Reviews

Hailed as the cure for mental illness.Was it more damaging than helpful? Walter Freeman,Lobotomist
Until the 1930's,mentally "unstable" or "depressed" or "insane" people were often institutionalized,forgotten or considered an embarrassment to the family.Walter Freeman,the son of an American leading doctor,Dr.Keene, with much to prove and ambition for fame,began to "rescue" the mentally troubled by working on and seeking to perfect the bi-orbital frontal lobotomy- a technique whereby an simple ice pick is tapped into the frontal lobe of the brain and render the patient docile,relieved of all anxiety, thus "cured".The medical community and psychiatric community at first was skeptical,but within the shortest period of time began hailing Freeman.s lobotomy as standard medical procedure,so much so, that many unqualified people began to perform this simple five minute procedure!!!This "cure" would potentially end psychiatry (which carries it's own baggage) as we knew it.

If you want to watch this 60 minute special from PBS' 'American Experience", your hair will stand on end and questions will be raised in your minds about how quickly people search for "miracle cures" and how haphazardly the revered medical community can toss aside all good and correct scientific practice in the light of continued evaluation over a period of time! People flocked in droves to have this procedure done.Families,burdened with a loved one who was mentally imbalanced made decisions under a doctor's advice to have the lobotomy done.

This documentary explores Walter Freeman,and at times villaifies and at times praises his work.This is how he was viewed by two camps in his lifetime.Was he a sane and rational scientist,or was he a egotistical maniac bent on fame?

I first became aware of lobotomy when as an 11 year old I was driven through a Mental Institution near Philadelphia where you could view lobotomy patients caged in yards in full view! This was legal in 1966! I have NEVER forgotten it.The next time lobotomy was presented to me was in the famous film Frances starring Jessica Lange (nominated for an Oscar) concerning the actress Frances Farmer who was forced against her will to be lobotomized.The other famous person that I recalled was Rosemary Kennedy,(yes of THE Kennedy's) who was lobotomized at 23 in order to avoid political scandal that might keep the Kennedy boys from being elected!(Kennedys of Massachusetts

In his 70's, Freeman,discredited and forced not to practice medicine by the very community that once hailed him as saviour,sought atonement or vindication by tracking down his thousands of patients seeking to verify that his work WAS scientifically successful.Crushed by his findings, he died a short while later in 1972.

I recently wanted to have lazer surgery performed on my eyes.My physician advised against it with one brief statement: "There simply has not been enough time to evaluate scientifically if this procedure is a cure or if it will have serious repercussions down the road".I respected his scientifically conservative opinion and still wear glasses and contacts!!
Thank God, also, that therapists are still around instead of lobotomy (although the postscript of this DVD states that lobotomies are still performed in "most extreme cases"....now who decides that?)

Walter Freeman-villain or saint?...Oh did I forget that lobotomy was awarded the 1963 Nobel Prize? Now reason that one out if you are in YOUR right mind!Did you take your VIOXX,CELEBREX or THORAZINE today?

The Reserve by Russell Banks
"The Reserve" by Russell Banks uses the lobotomy as a plot device. It is an excellent book. The audio version, narrated by Tom Stechschulte, is one of the best performances I have heard.