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Characters On The Couch

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

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Janis Little Girl Blue Singing for her Feelings To Be Heard

JANIS LITTLE GIRL BLUE
Singing For Her Feelings
To Be Heard

May 31, 2016 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

“I sing because I can experience a lot of feelings…” Otherwise, Janis Joplin had no one to hear. The most chilling part of Amy Berg’s documentary, Janis: Little Girl Blue, is to witness the cold formality of Mother and Father Joplin. No one can miss Janis’s hunger for love. Less obvious are the roots of …

Read moreJANIS LITTLE GIRL BLUE
Singing For Her Feelings
To Be Heard
Losing Ground When a call to Mama is unanswered

LOSING GROUND
When A Call For ‘Mama’
Is Unanswered

May 4, 2016 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

What is lurking below the surface of a highly intellectualized philosophy professor’s emotional control? We find out in Losing Ground, filmed in 1982 but recently released by Milestone Films, noteworthy for being the first feature-length film produced and directed by a Black American woman. Kathleen Collins, who died an early death of cancer in 1988, …

Read moreLOSING GROUND
When A Call For ‘Mama’
Is Unanswered
Carol The Questions & Answers Love Can Bring

CAROL
The Questions &Answers
Love Can Bring

April 11, 2016 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

Carol, directed by Todd Haynes, starring Cate Blanchett as Carol and Rooney Mara as Therese, is a story of love. More deeply, though, Carol is a story about why we’re drawn to love a certain person. In each attraction, something missing is sensed and desired in the other. Love can bring us to ourselves in a …

Read moreCAROL
The Questions &Answers
Love Can Bring
The Look of Silence Why A Replacement Child Must Face His Brother's Death

THE LOOK OF SILENCE
Why A Replacement Child
Must Face His Brother’s Death

March 24, 2016 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

Joshua Oppenheimer’s 2016 Oscar-nominated documentary, The Look Of Silence, is a riveting exploration of the Indonesian genocide’s complicated psychological aftermath. In 1965-1967, the military dictatorship killed over a million assumed Communists opposed to their rule. In the film, we follow the Rukun family, centered on 44-year-old Adi, all unable to grieve the brutal murder of …

Read moreTHE LOOK OF SILENCE
Why A Replacement Child
Must Face His Brother’s Death
Psychology of the Oscars 2016 And the Winner Is ...?

PSYCHOLOGY OF THE OSCARS 2016
And The Winners Are …?

February 28, 2016 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

I am a psychoanalyst who loves my work. I am also intrigued by what the characters in film can tell us about real human problems. This season, I’ve closely watched and written about all the Best Picture Nominees for the Oscars 2016. I’ve also written pieces on several of the nominated documentaries and some of the films with nominated actors and actresses. …

Read morePSYCHOLOGY OF THE OSCARS 2016
And The Winners Are …?
The Martian Trauma of Abandonment Self-Sufficiency or Human Connection?

THE MARTIAN
Trauma Of Abandonment
Self-Sufficiency Or Connection?

February 27, 2016 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

Director Ridley Scott’s film, The Martian, tells the story of NASA astronaut Mark Watney’s (Matt Damon) accidental abandonment on the barren planet of Mars. Early childhood abandonment also creates a desolate emotional landscape. People can’t be trusted. Hope is fractured. On Mars, Mark has two things to turn to 1. distasteful music of Commander Lewis’ …

Read moreTHE MARTIAN
Trauma Of Abandonment
Self-Sufficiency Or Connection?
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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.”

Recent Posts

Everything Everywhere All At Once Breaking Out of Someone Else's Box
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The Power of the Dog Why Phil Burbank’s Cruelty is About What He Hates in Himself
SOUND OF METAL How Silence Stops A Man From Running

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