Movies And Mental Illness

This popular and critically acclaimed text, using movies to help learn about mental illness, has been fully updated with DSM-5 and ICD-10 diagnoses, dozens of evocative and informative frame grabs, a full film index, "Authors' Picks," sample syllabus, more international films and shorts... Films can be a powerful aid to learning about mental illness and psychopathology - for students of psychology, psychiatry, social work, medicine, nursing, counseling, literature or media studies, and for anyone interested in mental health. Movies and Mental Illness, written by experienced clinicians and teachers who are themselves movie aficionados, has established a great reputation as a uniquely enjoyable and highly memorable text for learning about psychopathology. The new edition has been fully updated to include DSM-5 and ICD-10 diagnoses. The core clinical chapters each use a fabricated case history and Mini-Mental State Examination along with synopses and discussions about specific movies to explain, teach, and encourage discussion about all the most important mental health disorders. Each chapter also includes: Critical Thinking Questions; "Authors' Picks" (Top 10 Films); What To Read if You Only Have Time to Read One Book or Article; and Topics for Group Discussions. Other features of the new, expanded edition include: * Full index of films * Sample course syllabus * Ratings of around 1,500 films * Fascinating appendices, such as "Top 50 Heroes and Villains," psychotherapists in movies, misconceptions about mental illness in movies, and recommended websites, plus listings of the PRISM Awards for Feature Films and the SAMHSA Voice Awards.

The clinical chapters of this book each use a case history along with synopses and scenes from one or two specific, often well known films to explain and teach students about the most important disorders encountered in clinical practice.

The popular, critically acclaimed text on psychopathology in movies – now including the latest movies and more Explores films according to the diagnostic criteria of DSM-5 and ICD-11 Provides psychological ratings of nearly 1,500 films Includes downloadable teaching materials Films can be a powerful aid to learning about mental illness and psychopathology – for practitioners and students in fields as diverse as psychology, psychiatry, social work, medicine, nursing, counseling, literature, or media studies, and for anyone interested in mental health. Watching films relevant to mental health can actually help you become a more productive therapist and a more astute diagnostician. Movies and Mental Illness, written by an eminent clinical psychologist (who is also a movie aficionado), has established a reputation as a uniquely enjoyable and highly memorable text for learning about psychopathology. This new edition has been completely revised to explore current issues, such as children's screentime and celebrities with mental illness, and to include the numerous films that have been released since the last edition. The core clinical chapters raise provocative questions about differential diagnosis (according to the DSM-5 and ICD-11) for the primary characters portrayed in the films. Included are also a full index of films; sample course syllabus; ratings of close to 1,500 films; fascinating appendices, such as "Top 50 Heroes and Villains," psychotherapists in movies, and misconceptions about mental illness in movies. Accompanying the new edition are downloadable resources for teachers that include critical questions and topics for discussion, as well as fabricated case histories based on movie characters with Mini-Mental State Examinations that help explain, teach, and encourage discussion about important mental health disorders. In addition, the author plans a regular series of online "Spotlights" articles that will critically examine the psychological content of new movies as they are released.

"Movies and Mental Illness "by Danny Wedding and Mary Ann Boyd, provides students and instructors with an innovative and intriguing approach to studying abnormal psychology. This text utilizes the viewing and discussion of popular films to illuminate and enhance student understanding of abnormal behavior. As educators themselves, the authors have used films to supplement their lectures and have found that films are an ideal medium for teaching students in psychology, social work, medicine, nursing and counseling about the fascinating world of psychopathology. The text mirrors the table of contents of a typical abnormal psychology text, except it uses a main film to illustrate the disorder. Questions are integrated throughout to provide teaching flexibility as well as stimulate critical thinking and classroom discussion. Films may be viewed independently, in small groups, or in class. A comprehensive appendix provides a listing of films and offers the student and instructor a resource for many years to come. The book is designed to supplement a main abnormal psychology textbook, and will be available as a prepack with Abnormal Psycholgy, Eighth Edition, by Alloy, Jacobson, and Acocella.

A unique exploration of how mental illness is portrayed in classic and contemporary films. The study of classic and contemporary films can provide a powerful avenue to understand the experience of mental illness. In Madness at the Movies, James Charney, MD, a practicing psychiatrist and long-time cinephile, examines films that delve deeply into characters' inner worlds, and he analyzes moments that help define their particular mental illness. Based on the highly popular course that Charney taught at Yale University and the American University of Rome, Madness at the Movies introduces readers to films that may be new to them and encourages them to view these films in an entirely new way. Through films such as Psycho, Taxi Driver, Through a Glass Darkly, Night of the Hunter, A Woman Under the Influence, Ordinary People, and As Good As It Gets, Charney covers an array of disorders, including psychosis, paranoia, psychopathy, depression, bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and anxiety. He examines how these films work to convey the essence of each illness. He also looks at how each film reflects the understanding of mental illness at the time it was released as well as the culture that shaped that understanding. Charney explains how to observe the behaviors displayed by characters in the films, paying close attention to signs of mental illness. He demonstrates that learning to read a film can be as absorbing as watching one. By viewing these films through the lens of mental health, readers can hone their observational skills and learn to assess the accuracy of depictions of mental illness in popular media.

The stigmatization of mental illness in film has been well documented in literature. Little has been written, however, about the ability of movies to portray mental illness sympathetically and accurately. People Like Ourselves: Portrayals of Mental Illness in the Movies fills that void with a close look at mental illness in more than seventy American movies, beginning with classics such as The Snake Pit and Now, Voyager and including such contemporary successes as A Beautiful Mind and As Good as It Gets. Films by legendary directors Billy Wilder, William Wyler, Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick, Oliver Stone, Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, and John Cassavetes are included. Through the examination of universal themes relating to one's self and society, the denial of reality, the role of women, creativity, war, and violence, Zimmerman argues that these ground-breaking films defy stereotypes, presenting sympathetic portraits of people who are mentally ill, and advance the movie-going public's understanding of mental illness, while providing insight into its causes, diagnosis, and treatment. More importantly, they portray mentally ill people as ordinary people with conflicts and desires common to everyone. Like the motion pictures it revisits, this fascinating book offers insight, entertainment, and a sense of understanding.

Did you know that watching certain movies can improve your mental health? Research has shown that movies with positive messages can make us stronger, better, kinder, and more empathetic people. They can heal us, uplift us, and allow us a safe way to work through our struggles. In addition, watching movies with loved ones can foster a deep emotional connection. Author Anne Feustel first discovered watching movies as a coping skill when she saw a childhood favorite, The Princess Bride, while experiencing a manic episode. Happily, she was transported to a magical realm, a place where her mania could not follow. It became her go-to movie when she was struggling with mania, depression, or anxiety. Later, Anne realized that viewing specific movies had eased her emotional struggles since she was a child, especially when she watched them with her sister. Along with sharing her mental health journey, Anne explores the history of cinematherapy as a tool to create healthy coping skills and sustain personal growth. Inclusion and equality are important criteria for the movies that Anne chose. Many films did not make the cut because of issues such as racism, sexism, fatphobia, homophobia, and extreme violence. For each of the 12 movies reviewed in the book, Anne details how they can affect our mental health. She also adds caveats (aspects viewers might object to), triggers (scenes that might cause viewers to relive a traumatic event), and fun facts. The movies include Inside Out, When Harry Met Sally..., and The Princess Bride. So, film fans, it's time to dive deep into your favorite movies!

Contemporary Hollywood films commonly use mental disorders as a magnifier by which social, political, or economic problems become enlarged in order to critique societal conditions. Cinema has a long history of amplifying human emotion or experience for dramatic effect. The heightened representations of people with mental disorder often elide one category of literal truths for the benefit of different moral or emotional reasons. With films like Fight Club, The Silence of the Lambs, The Dark Knight, and Black Swan, this book address characters identified by film or media as people who are crazy, mentally ill, developmentally delayed, insane, have autism spectrum disorder, associative personality disorder, or who have other mental disorders. Despite the vast array of differences in people’s experiences, film often marginalizes people with mental disorders in ways that make it important to be inclusive of these varied experiences. These characters also commonly become subject to the structures of hierarchy and control that actual people with mental disorders encounter. Cinematic patterns of control and oppression heavily influence the narratives of those considered crazy by the outside world.