movie connections · genre thriller 2003 1. use the following words to recap the movie. underline...

Extra Credit Library

Movie ConnectionsPsych Films

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Extra Credit Points 10

I Am SamGenre: Drama Year: 2001 Rating: PG-13Actors: Sean Penn, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dakota FanningTopics: Mental Retardation, Forensic, Family Dysfunction

Write a synopsis using 10 terms from Chapters 1, 2, and 6.

Connection:Sean Penn portrays a man with mental retardation fighting for custody of his 7-year-old child. Sam's group of friends are entertaining - two are truly developmentally disabled - his close neighbor is agoraphobic. His lawyer is the stereotypical overworked yuppie professional woman, estranged from her family. The film is a classic tearjerker. Despite significant research for the film (watch the supplemental documentary), how realistic were the events? Did he take her to a pediatrician? Did the pediatrician have any concerns about his care? Was that a realistic portrayal of cross-examination of an expert witness? Could Sam really have afforded the apartment at the end in Los Angeles, making somewhere around $8/hour? What really was in the best interest of the child? Was the opposing attorney all that wrong? Many things to consider.



Connection:1. Precognition is the ability to foretell events. How has the ability to see the future changed Washington D.C.? Why does it only show certain situations?

2. Many people are convinced that ESP exists because of an intense personal experience. In “Minority Report” what is attributed to their ability to foretell the future?

3. With precognition your life appears to be mapped out. How did the movie refute this belief?

Minority ReportGenre: Thriller Year: 2002 Rating: PG13

Write a synopsis using 10 terms from Chapter 8.



Finding NemoGenre: Animation /Family Year: 2003 Rating: G

Write a synopsis using 10 terms from Chapter 10. Give one example, other than 9/11 of a time you had a flashbulb

Connection: 1. Document a scene where Dory is practicing Maintenance Rehearsal?

2. At one point on their journey, Dory is cautioned to go through a trench, not over it. Dory forgets this information, of course, but when they finally get to the trench she has the intuitive feeling that they should go through, not over. Marlin overrules her, and they encounter a school of jellyfish. Why would Dory be able to recall that material?

3. When Dory finally encounters Nemo, she has of course forgotten all about him. When she asks his name, he replies "Nemo", and she comments that "That's a nice name". Does this indicate short term or long term memory loss?



Gothika (2003)

1) The purpose of watching the movie Gothika was to make a connection between the material covered in class and Hollywood, but the film also allows the material to become more meaningful. What is the benefit of making material more meaningful? (Ch. 10)

2) Why was Miranda Grey unable to recall the disturbing events that took place on the night her husband was murdered? Support Answer (Ch. 10)

3) Would Miranda Grey’s lawyer recommend her to take a Lie Detection Test? Support Answer (Ch. 12) 4) Were the torturing and killing by Doug Grey and Sheriff Ryan conducted with intrinsic or extrinsic motivation? Why do

you believe so? (Ch. 12)5) According to Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, what motivated Doug Grey and Sheriff Ryan to commit those

horrifying crimes? Was it Fundamental, Psychological or Self Actualization? Explain your reasoning. (Ch. 12)6) Is Miranda Grey motivated to find the real killers through intrinsic or extrinsic motivation? Why do you believe so? (Ch.

12)7) Describe the three parts of the emotional state of fear. (Ch. 12)



Frailty (2001)Chapter 10: Memory and Thought

1) The movie offers insight into the troubled past of the Meik family by recalling evidence through Fenton’s flashbacks. Fenton’s flashbacks represent what type of memory? Explain

2) As Fenton tells FBI Agent Doyle the story of slayings, Agent Doyle is skeptical of the facts presented. Agent Doyle refers to Fenton as “some crazy nut” and thinks some of his story is distorted and fictional. Agent Doyle’s belief that Fenton’s recollection was flawed is an example of what kind of problem in retrieving information? Explain

3) When Fenton tells his tragic and horrifying story, Agent Doyle becomes hesitant because of how long Fenton was able to keep this a secret. Fenton’s response was he wanted to block out these memories and forget. How can an individual simply brush aside such traumatic events? In Psychology, we refer to this as what? Be sure to go into detail.

4) The purpose of watching the movie Frailty was to make a connection between the material covered in class and Hollywood, but the film also allows the material to become more meaningful. What is the benefit of making material more meaningful?

Chapter 12: Motivation and Emotion5) The movie takes a disturbing twist, as the once loving family becomes religious fanatics set on a crusade to destroy “demons.” Fenton’s father and brother, Adam, swore to carry out this “divine”

mission but Fenton refuses to participate in the killings. Incorporating Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, what motivated Fenton to avoid turning his family in (Fundamental, Psychological or Self-Actualization)? Be specific and explain in detail.

6) Adam and his father call themselves “God’s Hands” and our excited to take on this mission. If Adam and his father were “God’s Hands” abolishing demons, were they doing this more for extrinsic or intrinsic reasons? Explain why you feel this way. If Adam and his father were merely fanatic religious serial killers/freaks that went off the deep end, were they doing this more for extrinsic or intrinsic reasons? Explain why you feel this way.

7) We have a wide range of emotions, some that promote approach behavior and others that influence avoidance behavior. Name and describe some emotions you felt during the movie and indicate if they were positive or negative emotions (pg. 329)

8) Emotions are based on three parts: physical, cognitive and behavioral. Use one emotion you felt from the movie Frailty and explain each stage of the emotion. For example Happy- physical heart rate and breathing increased, behavioral outward expression of a smile, and cognitive describe the scene and how the situation causes the emotion.


http://www.imdb.com/Sections/Years/2001/

http://www.imdb.com/Sections/Years/2001/


A Beautiful Mind Genre: Drama Year: 2001 Rating: PG-13Actors: Russell Crowe, Ed Harris, Jennifer ConnellyTopics: Schizophrenia


Connection:Academy Award winner for Best Picture and Best Supporting Actress. Russell Crowe portrays Nash, a brilliant mathematician. There is a major plot twist - stop reading here if you don't want it spoiled…We learn that we are misled - situations and characters turn out to be portrayals of Nash's delusional thinking and hallucinations. We see him spiral downward in the throws of his psychotic thinking or the side effects of his medications. What do you think about the suggestion that he was able to self-challenge the reality of the hallucinations, as at the end of the movie? What do you with plenty more information missing from the Hollywood version…



Matchstick Men Genre: Drama/Comedy Year: 2003 Rating: PG-13Actors: Nicolas Cage, Sam Rockwell, Alison LohmanTopics: OCD, Treatment, Personality Disorder


Connection:Nicholas Cage as the con man with obsessive-compulsive disorder. Very entertaining film. Consider the accuracy of portrayal (was it "real" OCD or a conversion disorder, for example). What about the ethics of the treatment he experienced?



What About Bob? Genre: Comedy Year: 1991 Rating: PG-13Actors: Richard Dreyfuss, Bill Murray, Julie HagertyTopics: Treatment, Personality Disorder, Family Dysfunction

Write a synopsis using 10 terms from Chapter 15 and 16.

Connection:Cute movie with Richard Dreyfuss as the competent (or burned out?) psychotherapist and Bill Murray as the patient (who seems to have more insight...). Note the difference in perception of Bob between the therapist and his family. Has its flaws, but is a fun film.



As Good As It Gets Favorite

Genre: Drama/Comedy Year: 1997 Rating: PG-13Actors: Jack Nicholson, Greg Kinnear, Helen HuntTopics: OCD, Personality Disorder


Connection:Academy Award winner for Best Actor and Best Actress. Jack Nicholson with Obsessive- Compulsive Disorder, as well as plenty of Axis II. Really great movie.



Conspiracy TheoryGenre: Drama Year: 1997 Rating: RActors: Mel Gibson, Julia Roberts, Patrick StewartTopics: Paranoia


Connection:Mel Gibson and Julia Roberts - good combo, but realistic movie? Mel is paranoid, conspiracies everywhere, but once in awhile, "just like a stopped clock," (wonderful analogy from Roger Ebert) he's right. There also is a government psychiatrist (are his treatments therapeutic?!). Diagnosis for Mel? [Suggested by Victoria Mellody, University of Arizona-Tucson]



CopycatGenre: Drama Year: 1995 Rating: RActors: Sigourney Weaver., Holly Hunter, Dermot MulroneyTopics: Anxiety Disorder, Forensic


Connection:Sigourney Weaver as an agoraphobic psychologist, oh, and there's a homicidal maniac in the movie. How accurately is the agoraphobia portrayed?



Session 9Genre Thriller 2003

1. Use the following words to recap the movie. Underline and bold the terms used. a. Abnormal Normal Behaviorb. Stressc. Dissociative Identity Disorderd. Dissociative Amnesiae. Phobia/Nyctophobia

2. Psychologists distinguish abnormal behavior from normal behavior by looking at all the following factors EXCEPT ____.a) devianceb) adjustmentc) psychological healthd) actions that are not understood

3. Which of the following statements about somatoform and dissociative disorders is TRUE?a) Sigmund Freud used the term hysteria to describe dissociative disorder.b) People with conversion disorders experience loss of physical functioning even though there is no physical damage to their bodies.c) Hypochondriasis is an example of a dissociative disorder.d) Dissociative identity disorder is amnesia coupled with active flight to a different environment.

4. Which of the following statements about schizophrenia is NOT TRUE?a) Research suggests that schizophrenia is caused by genetic, environmental, and biochemical factors.b) To a great extent, a person with schizophrenia loses contact with reality.c) People with schizophrenia may display impaired movement and inappropriate emotions.d) Schizophrenia affects 1 in 1,000 people worldwide.

5. The most accurate description of psychological disorder is ____.a) when people's psychological processes break down and they can no longer function on a daily basisb) mental illnessc) behavior that deviates from that of the majority of peopled) schizophrenia


movie connections · genre thriller 2003 1. use the following words to recap the movie. underline...

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