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Characters On The Couch

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

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loss

The Visit 4 Signs Loss and Guilt are too scary to feel

SHYAMALAN’S THE VISIT
4 Signs Loss And Guilt
Are Too Scary To Feel

September 29, 2015 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

M. Night Shyamalan’s new psychological horror film, The Visit, has twists and turns and unexpected surprises that I wouldn’t think of revealing. And, of course, this film has one of Shyamalan’s shock endings – it wouldn’t be a Shyamalan film without it. But for me as a psychoanalyst, there’s something else of more interest. What …

Read moreSHYAMALAN’S THE VISIT
4 Signs Loss And Guilt
Are Too Scary To Feel
Jake Gyllenhaal Demolition and Grieving

JAKE GYLLENHAAL
DEMOLITION
Ways Not to Grieve

September 11, 2015 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

I just watched the trailer for Jake Gyllenhaal’s upcoming 2016 film, Demolition, about the aftermath of his character, Davis’s, sudden loss of his wife, Julia. Loss can take many forms. As the trailer shows, Davis unravels. He can’t pull himself together. His father-in-law tries to encourage him to rebuild his life. To do so, he …

Read moreJAKE GYLLENHAAL
DEMOLITION
Ways Not to Grieve
The Phantom of The Opera A Girl Who Can't Grieve Her Dead Father

THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
A Girl Who Can’t Grieve
Her Dead Father

September 8, 2015 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

Loss can be a dead place. If you move forward, you’ll know the person you love is gone. As I sat spellbound in the Majestic Theater watching the brilliant performances of James Barbour as Phantom and Julia Udine as Christine Daad, I knew that The Phantom Of The Opera isn’t only the story of a …

Read moreTHE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
A Girl Who Can’t Grieve
Her Dead Father
The Girl in the Train What's in an Obsession?

THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN
What’s In An Obsession?

August 11, 2015 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

Paula Hawkins’ New York Times bestselling novel, The Girl On The Train, gives us Rachel – a girl obsessed. There’s no question this novel is a mind-bending murder mystery par excellence. But, for me as a psychoanalyst, it poses a more interesting question. What’s behind Rachel’s obsession? Rachel Watson rides the train every day. She …

Read moreTHE GIRL ON THE TRAIN
What’s In An Obsession?
Mad Men Season 7 Finale It's The Real Thing 4 Ways We'd See A Changed Don

MAD MEN Season 7 Finale
It’s The Real Thing
4 Ways We’d See A Changed Don

June 2, 2015 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

We’re left to wonder: what will become of Don Draper (Jon Hamm)? As Coca Cola’s hilltop jingle ends Mad Men Season 7 Finale, we have questions that don’t have answers. Has Don changed? Or, is he just the quintessential ad man – a man who escapes into his stories because they’re better than his personal …

Read moreMAD MEN Season 7 Finale
It’s The Real Thing
4 Ways We’d See A Changed Don
Mad Men Season 7 Finale

MAD MEN Season 7 Finale
Sally & Her Brothers
Children Who Can’t Grieve

May 30, 2015 by Dr. Sandra E. Cohen

We’re all still talking about Mad Men Season 7 Finale. And, yes, I agree – the characters often hit close to home with many of life’s painful realities. Yet, I have to say that the tongue-in-cheek jingle at Mad Men’Season 7 Finale was a bit too disturbing. Leaving Sally (Kiernan Shipka) doing dishes in the …

Read moreMAD MEN Season 7 Finale
Sally & Her Brothers
Children Who Can’t Grieve
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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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