Movies & Mental Illness

 Movies and Mental Illness

 This course uses films as a way to introduce psychopathology. While films have great potential to educate about mental illness, they also have the ability to generate negative and inaccurate portrayals of psychopathology that eventuate in societal stigmatization of people with mental illness. Students act as movie critics, writing reviews of films that have been chosen from a list chosen by the instructor. In addition, students complete a group project involving the critique of a film chosen by the group. The reviews deal with what the films do well in portraying mental illness and what they do to promote inaccurate portrayals of the illnesses discussed in the film.

Class Assignments

Class Assignments

  1)     Class attendance and participation (10%).

         Attendance is mandatory the first week of class and required 7 other days (see class outline).

  2)      Film Reviews (60%)

        Six films will be shown in class on the assigned days. Students can either watch the film in class     or on their own. The reviews will be graded on the degree to which the reviewer is able to discuss the accuracies and inaccuracies of the portrayal of mental illness in the film. Reviews must be typed double spaced and e-mailed to me in Word. No other format allowed. Reviews not received by deadline will be penalized 5 points for each delayed day up to six days & if not received by that point will automatically be counted as zero. 

   3)      Group Projects (30%)

         Teams of 3 students (selected randomly) will select any film they choose and have 45 minutes of class time to present and critique clips from the film. Group members will be required to grade each other’s contributions and turn in their evaluations the day of the presentation.

Class Schedule

Movies and Mental Illness

Course Outline

Sept 1                         Orientation                  MANDATORY ATTENDANCE

Sept 8                         Film 1                           Review Due 9/15 at noon

Sept 15                       Film II                           Review Due 9/22 at noon

Sept 22                       Film III                          Review Due 9/29 at noon

Sept 29                       Class Discussion        Attendance Taken

Oct 6                           Film IV                          Review Due 10/13 at noon

Oct 13                         Film V                           Review Due 10/20 at noon

Oct 20                         Film VI                          Review Due 10/27 at noon

Oct 27                         Groups Meet               Attendance Taken.                                                                  Nov. 3                         3 Group Projects          Attendance Taken

Nov 10                        3 Group Projects         Attendance Taken

Nov 17                        3 Group Projects         Attendance Taken

Nov 24                        Thanksgiving              No Class

Dec 1                          1 Group Project           Attendance Taken

Dec 8                           Class Discussion        Attendance Taken

NO FINAL EXAM

SUGGESTED READINGS & VIDEOS

FILM I, FATAL ATTRACTION, (BORDERLINE PERSONALITY DISORDER)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=967Ckat7f98 (VIDEO)

https://www.clearviewwomenscenter.com/borderline-personality-disorder-dsm-v.html

http://ps.psychiatryonline.org/doi/abs/10.1176/ps.49.2.173

http://silbermanvoices.com/tell-me-im-ugly-a-clinical-case-analysis-identifying-borderline-personality-disorder-in-a-sex-worker/

https://www.verywell.com/a-borderline-personality-case-example-425371

http://www1.appstate.edu/~hillrw/Borderline-SaraH/borderline.html

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2877618/

http://www.healthyplace.com/personality-disorders/malignant-self-love/borderline-patient-a-case-study/

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/shrinkwrapped/201103/the-borderline-personality-clinical-example

FILM II DAYS OF WINE & ROSES,(ALCOHOLISM)

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=lwv7Utcf-gM  (VIDEO)

http://www.nytimes.com/health/guides/disease/alcoholism/print.html

http://americanaddictioncenters.org/alcoholism-treatment/stages/

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/10/24/elizabeth-pena-and-the-truth-about-alcoholic-women.html

FILM III MR. JONES (BIPOLAR DISORDER)

http://www.nytimes.com/health/guides/disease/bipolar-disorder/print.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpE-oaix5kA (VIDEO)

http://www.alldocumentaries.org/a-summer-in-the-cage/ (VIDEO)

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/28/magazine/the-problem-with-how-we-treat-bipolar-disorder.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 (VIDEO)

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/28/magazine/i-dont-believe-in-god-but-i-believe-in-lithium.html?_r=0 (VIDEO)

FILM IV OWNING MAHONEY (GAMBLING DISORDER)

http://www.nytimes.com/health/guides/disease/pathological-gambling/overview.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7UVO5_zXj0 (VIDEO PART I)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66Y1uv6mB-4 (VIDEO PART II)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaGvi4W3jm4 (VIDEO PART III)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpghsRHjcJU (VIDEO PART IV)

FILM V CANVAS (SCHIZOPHRENIA)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48YJMOcykvc (VIDEO)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rv0b1unxUpM (VIDEO)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aP3SfgO3_Vw (VIDEO)

FILM VI DIRTY FILTHY LOVE (OCD+TOURETTES DISORDER)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cl5zOWigi5M&app=desktop (VIDEO)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKiu1IZcEF0 (VIDEO)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAXjq28Wpyk (VIDEO PART I)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywMsMjGF_nw (VIDEO PART II)

ASSIGNED FILMS ON YOUTUBE

FILM V CANVAS

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=V0B6sXUXtNA

FILM VI DIRTY FILTHY LOVE

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9pHdJNhT69k