How a Psychologist Helps You Understand Trauma Through Film & tV Characters
Welcome to Characters On The Couch, my Film & Television site, where I delve into character psychology. If you’re interested in psychology, film, or a combination of the two, I bring my insights into your favorite contemporary and classic characters. I hope to help you understand their deeper psychological motivations (and, maybe, even your own).
When you think about truly iconic films, do you wonder what gives them such staying power? Is it the time of your life when you watched them? Is it the costumes or images that seemed unforgettable? Did one or more characters align with your struggles or painful experiences? Did you feel along with them? Or maybe, it’s simply that the film pulled at your heart and caused you to explore emotions in a new and profound way?
I say it’s all of the above. And, in the same way, when these meaningful elements are missing, a story becomes forgettable. I hope this site will encourage you to transform your story, personal or in writing, into magic by finding the human thread that links it and you to a universal experience.
Everything in life ties us back to complex emotions and the rhythm and language of feelings and psychology. I'll offer your that language of feeling in my blog as I write about the human struggles in each film.
NATALIE PORTMAN On Growing Up
It’s Not How Others See You
Not giving in to how you’re afraid people see you is no small thing. And, getting there at 34 like Natalie Portman is sometimes easier said than done. BuzzFeed’s piece, “11 Quotes From Natalie Portman that prove she just gets it,” honors her birthday. How much clearer could it be that Natalie also has her…
WAYWARD PINES
Where Fear Of Your Personal Truth
Is A Prison
Ethan Burke (Matt Dillon), Secret Service agent, apparently made a mistake and let someone suspicious go. Apparently, 621 people died. This weighs heavily on his conscience. Other mistakes weigh heavily, too. Such as having an affair with his partner, Kate Hewson (Carla Gugino), and hurting his wife and son. Yet, as four episodes of M.…
CAITLYN JENNER FREE TO BE
A Message For Us All
Courage is an understatement. More like it – refusal to accept anything less than freedom to finally be who Caitlyn Jenner is. I can’t help thinking about Marlo Thomas’ 1972 Ms. Women’s Foundation project (and catchy song) – Free To Be You And Me. Originally, it was meant to teach her then-young niece to refute gender…
