MOVIES:

(Note: Short synopsis Created by Brooke J. Cannon, PH.D. See Her great Psychology Movie Site here: http://www.psychmovies.com/)

As Good As It Gets
Genre: Drama/Comedy Year: 1997 Rating: PG-13 Actors: Jack Nicholson, Greg Kinnear, Helen Hunt Topics: Psychopathology, OCD, Personality Disorder, Social Academy Award winner for Best Actor and Best Actress. Jack Nicholson with ObsessiveCompulsive Disorder, as well as plenty of Axis II. Also addresses bias (homophobia) and attitude change. Really great movie.

Awakenings

Genre: Drama Year: 1990 Rating: PG-13 Actors: Robin Williams, Robert DeNiro, Julie KavnerTopics: Psychopathology, Neuropsychology, Treatment Wonderful movie. Based on Oliver Sacks' clinical cases. L-dopa's effects on encephalitis lethargica. Interesting glimpse inside a mental hospital in the 1960s. Why do you think paranoia/psychosis developed after prolonged L-dopa treatment? Neuronal supersensitivity? And what about Dr. Sacks' interpersonal anxieties - social phobia? Asperger's?

Beautiful Mind, A
Genre: Drama Year: 2001 Rating: PG-13 Actors: Russell Crowe, Ed Harris, Jennifer ConnellyTopics: Psychopathology, Treatment, Schizophrenia, Marital/Family Dynamics, Stress and Coping Academy Award winner for Best Picture and Best Supporting Actress. Russell Crowe portrays Nash, a brilliant mathematician. There is a major plot twist - stop reading here if you don't want it spoiledWe learn that we are misled - situations and characters turn out to be portrayals of Nash's delusional thinking and hallucinations. We see him spiral downward in the throws of his psychotic thinking or the side effects of his medications. What do you think about the suggestion that he was able to self-challenge the reality of the hallucinations, as at the end of the movie? What do you think this movie did for public perception of schizophrenia? If you really want to know his story, read the book not an easy read, mind you, but with plenty more information missing from the Hollywood version Benny & Joon Genre: Drama/Comedy Year: 1993 Rating: PG-13 Actors: Johnny Depp, Mary Stuart Masterson, Aidan Quinn Topics: Psychopathology, Schizophrenia, Personality Disorder, Marital/Family Dynamics, Stress and Coping Early movie with Johnny Depp who develops a relationship with young woman who is schizophrenic. Diagnostic considerations for Depp's character? Good portrayal of stresses on family, as Joon's brother devotes himself to her care. Depp performs a great impression of Charlie Chaplin's famous "rolls on forks" routine. Cute movie.

Canvas

Genre: Drama Year: 2006 Rating: PG-13Actors: Joe Pantoliano, Marcia Gay HardinTopics: Psychopathology, Psychotic Disorders, Marital/Family Dynamics, Treatment, Stress and Coping
Seen through the eyes of a young boy, this film demonstrates the impact of schizophrenia on the family. As such, I imagine it would be useful in working with families dealing with mental illness in a loved one. Great music and photography.

Don Juan DeMarco

Genre: Drama/Comedy Year: 1995 Rating: PG-13Actors: Johnny Depp, Marlon Brando, Faye Dunaway Topics: Psychopathology, Psychotic Disorders, Treatment, Marital/Family DynamicsJohnny Depp (one of my favorites) believes that he is the great lover, Don Juan. He is treated by therapist, Marlon Brando, who, as often happens in the movies, is really treated by his patient. Cute flick. I Am Sam Genre: Drama Year: 2001 Rating: PG-13 Actors: Sean Penn, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dakota Fanning Topics: Psychopathology, Neuropsychology, Forensic, Marital/Family Dynamics, Social Sean Penn portrays a man with mental retardation fighting for custody of his 7-year-old child. Sam's group of friends are entertaining - two are truly developmentally disabled his close neighbor is agoraphobic. His lawyer is the stereotypical overworked yuppie professional woman, estranged from her family. The film is a classic tearjerker. Despite significant research for the film (watch the supplemental documentary), how realistic were the events? Did he take her to a pediatrician? Did the pediatrician have any concerns about his care? Was that a realistic portrayal of cross-examination of an expert witness? Could Sam really have afforded the apartment at the end in Los Angeles, making somewhere around $8/hour? What really was in the best interest of the child? Was the opposing attorney all that wrong? Many things to consider. Juno Genre: Comedy/Drama Year: 2007 Rating: PG-13 Actors: Ellen Page, Michael Cera Topics: Developmental, Marital/Family Dynamics Highly enjoyable film chronically a pregnant teen girl's quest to find a couple to adopt her child. The dialogue is clever and quirky, earning it an Academy Award for original screenplay. Allows for exploration of various reactions to teen pregnancy.

K-Pax
Genre: Drama Year: 2001 Rating: PG-13 Actors: Kevin Spacey, Jeff Bridges, Mary McCormack Topics: Psychopathology, Psychotic Disorders, Treatment An enjoyable movie about a man admitted to a psychiatric facility who claims that he is an alien. Great portrayal of the relationships among patients and a dedicated psychiatrist. Too dedicated? At what point are boundaries crossed? What is your interpretation of the ending? If it was not an alien, what would the proper diagnosis be? How does this support the diathesis-stress model?

Lars and the Real Girl Genre: Comedy/Drama Year: 2007 Rating: PG-13 Actors: Ryan Gosling, Emily Mortimer, Kelli Garner Topics: Psychopathology, Psychotic Disorders, Treatment, Marital/Family Dynamics, Social I thoroughly LOVE this movie. Lars is an office worker in a small time. He's an odd, reclusive guy, but nice and harmless. Exposed to the concept of a "mail order doll" (anatomically correct) by a co-worker, he orders a doll, not for sexual reasons, but as part of a delusional system. Lars introduces her as his foreign girlfriend, who is in a wheelchair. The resulting responses from his family and community, as well as the very empathetic physician, make this a "feel good" movie. One can only hope that this sort of film could destigmatize mental illness and model supportive family and community response. It "takes a village" to treat mental illness. Matchstick Men Genre: Drama/Comedy Year: 2003 Rating: PG-13 Actors: Nicolas Cage, Sam Rockwell, Alison Lohman Topics: Psychopathology, Anxiety Disorders, Personality Disorders, Treatment Nicholas Cage as the con man with obsessive-compulsive disorder. Very entertaining film. Consider the accuracy of portrayal (was it "real" OCD or a conversion disorder, for example). What about the ethics of the treatment he experienced? Sixth Sense, The Genre: Drama Year: 1999 Rating: PG-13 Actors: Bruce Willis, Haley Joel Osment, Toni Collette Topics: Psychopathology, Treatment Bruce Willis as a child psychologist whose 6-year-old patient claims to see the spirits of dead people around him. Good film; nice plot twist. Also interesting brief portrayal of Munchausen's by Proxy. Willis is a much more ethical psychologist in this film than in the horrible Color of Night. What About Bob Genre: Comedy Year: 1991 Rating: PG-13 Actors: Richard Dreyfuss, Bill Murray, Julie Hagerty Topics: Psychopathology, Personality Disorders, Treatment, Marital/Family Dynamics Cute movie with Richard Dreyfuss as the competent (or burned out?) psychotherapist and Bill Murray as the patient (who seems to have more insight...). Note the difference in perception of Bob between the therapist and his family. Has its flaws, but is a fun film.