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Characters On The Couch

How a psychologist thinks about your favorite Film & TV characters.

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Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

TRUMBO The Dynamics of Fear It's Ravages Ruins & Undoing

TRUMBO & The Dynamics Of Fear
It’s Ravages, Ruins, & Undoing

December 14, 2015 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

“Now the truth of the matter is that there are a lot of things people don’t understand. Take the Einstein theory. Taxes. Love. Do you understand them? Neither do I. But they exist. They happen.” – Dalton Trumbo Dalton Trumbo is right. Things we don’t understand do happen. And, some things we don’t understand invoke …

Read moreTRUMBO & The Dynamics Of Fear
It’s Ravages, Ruins, & Undoing
UnREAL Bullying Woman & The Bully In Your Head

UnREAL
Bullying Women &
The Bully In Your Head

October 27, 2015 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

October 2015 is Bullying Prevention Month: Defeat The Bully In Your Head Lifetime TV UnREAL’s Rachel Goldberg (Shiri Appleby) and Quinn King (Constance Zimmer) are the quintessential bullies. They use, torment, humiliate, tear down, and pit their reality show’s women contestants against each other for a chance at Everlasting love. Love is the key word here. …

Read moreUnREAL
Bullying Women &
The Bully In Your Head
Writers Need Help With A Character Get It A Therapist

WRITERS
NEED HELP WITH A CHARACTER?
Get It A Therapist

October 25, 2015 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

I’m a therapist and a writer. As a writer, one of the things I do is write this blog called Characters On The Couch where I play therapist to your favorite Film & TV characters. As a writer, I also know that some writing flows more easily than others. Developing psychologically complex characters can be particularly challenging. …

Read moreWRITERS
NEED HELP WITH A CHARACTER?
Get It A Therapist
What Happened Miss Simone No Rest For A Love Starved Girl

WHAT HAPPENED, MISS SIMONE?
No Rest For
A Love-Starved Girl

October 14, 2015 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

What Happened, Miss Simone, Liz Garbus’ documentary of the brilliant and troubled Nina Simone’s life, ends by diagnosing Miss Simone with bipolar disorder. Does that explain her outrageous behavior? I don’t think so. Those with bipolar disorder are taken over by extremes of moods. But, in my experience, there’s much more to being bipolar than …

Read moreWHAT HAPPENED, MISS SIMONE?
No Rest For
A Love-Starved Girl
Aaron Sorkin's Steve Jobs Written As An Artist With a Psychoanalyst's Sensibility

AARON SORKIN’S STEVE JOBS
Written As An Artist
(With A Psychoanalyst’s Sensibility)

October 13, 2015 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

Steve Jobs, the recently released film, beautifully written and conceived by Aaron Sorkin, and directed by the gifted Danny Boyle, is brilliant and unexpected. A MUST SEE. I saw a screening at the Director’s Guild on Saturday, October 10th. It is without question Best Picture worthy. I can’t give enough accolades to the director and …

Read moreAARON SORKIN’S STEVE JOBS
Written As An Artist
(With A Psychoanalyst’s Sensibility)
UnREAl Like Mother like Daughter? Rachel's Toxic Mother's Trap

UnREAL
Like Mother Like Daughter?
Rachel’s Toxic Mother Trap

October 13, 2015 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

I’m not shocked by much – but UnREAL’S Episode 3, Mother, disturbed me. Rachel’s mother is clearly trouble. And, she’s a psychiatrist. Bad combination. I was left thinking about how deeply mothers affect their children. How mothers can make or break a child’s confidence and psychological stability. We don’t have to wander very far to …

Read moreUnREAL
Like Mother Like Daughter?
Rachel’s Toxic Mother Trap
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Inspiration

“We come to Film and TV to find our hidden stories. If we look deeply into a character’s psyche, there is much to see about ourselves.”

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