How a psychologist thinks about your favorite
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.
MELISSA MCCARTHY & SEXIST REPORTER
A Teaching Moment
A male reporter told Melissa McCarthy that she’s only a good actress when she looks attractive. And that she, in fact, looked “really bad” in her role as Tammy. She quite understandably was angry. But, Melissa McCarthy took the time to make it a teaching moment. To the reporter’s credit, he listened. He heard what…
MAD MEN Season 7 Finale
Therapy For Don Esalen Style
Is It Enough?
Mad Men Season 7 Finale takes Don Draper (Jon Hamm) to the ultimate darkness of the soul, only to end up … Where? It seems a tragic cosmic joke to leave the Draper – Francis family the only ones with loose ends. Don might be back on his game, conjuring up the world’s greatest Coca-Cola…
NANCY MEYERS THE INTERN
Mentorship Can Go Both Ways
I just watched the trailer for Nancy Meyers The Intern, coming to theaters on September 25th. It looks like it’s going to be right up there with The Holiday, Something’s Gotta Give, and It’s Complicated. Nancy Meyers is a master at exploring the intricate emotions and complex difficulties that relationships bring for women and men.…