Films Illustrating Psychopathology Danny Wedding Mary Ann Boyd ...

Appendix G: Films Illustrating Psychopathology 209
Renee Zellweger (Dependent), and Robin Wright-
Penn (Histrionic). Fascinating dynamics of a young
girl’s resilience with each personality disordered
mother-figure.
Wild at Heart (1990) Comedy/Drama/
Romance ΨΨΨ
David Lynch film with ex-con Nicolas Cage and
his lover, Laura Dern, as two antisocial personalities
(despite their apparent commitment to each
other). Won the Palme d’Ore at Cannes, but not all
critics were impressed. Too violent for some tastes.
Willard (2003) Drama ΨΨ
Crispin Glover plays a schizoid man whose only
contact is his critical mother and numerous rats living
in his basement. He uses the rats for revenge
until they turn on him.
Wise Blood (1979) Drama ΨΨΨ
John Huston’s adaptation of Flannery O’Connor’s
gothic Southern novel about an obsessed preacher.
Zoolander (2001) Comedy Ψ
Absurd, over-the-top depiction of a narcissistic
model who is brainwashed to become an assassin.
Ben Stiller directed, co-wrote, and starred in
this film.
Substance Use Disorders
Alcoholism
Arthur (1981) Comedy ΨΨ
Dudley Moore as a drunken millionaire who falls
in love with Liza Minnelli. A genuinely funny film,
but upsetting in its cavalier approach to alcoholism
and drunken driving.
Susan: “A real woman could stop
you from drinking.”
Arthur: “It’d have to be a real BIG
woman.”
Arthur
Barfly (1987) Comedy/Romance/Drama ΨΨΨΨ
Faye Dunaway and Mickey Rourke play two alcoholics
whose lives briefly touch. Good examination
of skid row alcoholism; based on a story by cult
poet Charles Bukowski.
Basketball Diaries, The (1995) Drama ΨΨΨ
Adolescent basketball stars succumb to drug abuse
in this film that stars Leonardo Dicaprio and Mark
Wahlberg. Adapted from a Jim Carroll novel.
Beloved Infidel (1959) Biography Ψ
Gregory Peck plays F. Scott Fitzgerald and Deborah
Kerr is columnist Sheila Graham, who tries to save
Fitzgerald from his alcoholism.
“You’re a T6—paralyzed from the
mid-chest down . . . . you’ll be in
a wheelchair for the rest of your
life.”
Ron Kovic’s grim prognosis
in Born on the Fourth of July
Born on the Fourth of July (1989)
Drama/War/Biography ΨΨΨΨ
Tom Cruise plays paralyzed and alcoholic Vietnam
veteran Ron Kovic in Oliver Stone’s film. Stone
won an Oscar as best director for this film.
Cat Ballou (1965) Comedy/Western Ψ
Light-hearted film, with Jane Fonda playing a
schoolteacher turned outlaw. Lee Marvin got an
Oscar for his role as an alcoholic gunman. The film
perpetuates the myth of the down-and-out drunk
whose shooting skills return after he has had a few
drinks. Marvin won an Oscar as Best Actor for his
role in this film.
“Big Daddy! Now what makes
him so big? His big heart? His
big belly? Or his big money?”
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) Drama ΨΨΨ
Paul Newman, Elizabeth Taylor, and Burl Ives in a
subdued adaptation of Tennessee Williams’ play
about “mendacity.” Alcohol plays a prominent role
in the life of almost all the character’s lives.
From: Wedding, D., Boyd, M.A., & Niemiec, R.M. Movies and Mental Illness: Using Films to Understand Psychopathology
© 2005 Hogrefe & Huber Publishers (www.hogrefe.com)