CinemaPsych Podcast

Join Alex and guest host Dr. Ed Hansen in a discussion of the various psychological concepts in the sharp witty satire of late-1990s office work in Mike Judge's Office Space (1999)! It's high time we discussed the often-neglected child of psychology, Industrial-Organizational Psychology, and all that it has to offer in this laugh-filled podcast episode exploring a laugh-inducing commentary on bad...

Join Alex and guest host Leslee Kortizke in a discussion of the various psychological concepts in the biopic of Dr. Alfred Kinsey in the aptly-named Kinsey (2004)! The discussion is of course on the titular character's groundbreaking work on the sexual behaviors of Americans in the 1940s and 1950s, an extremely taboo subject of the time! The episode features an exploration of the precursors to the...

90s satire But I'm a Cheerleader (1999)! The film stars Natasha Lyonne and Clea Duvall as lesbians forced to attend a straight conversion camp. While the content is heavy — conversion therapy is wrong at all levels for both orientation AND gender conversion — if you're ready to laugh at the absurdity of it all, tag along! The trio chat about gender identity and roles, sexual orientation, and how t...

Join Alex and guest hosts Drs. Keli Braitman and Jen Simonds as the three dissect and discuss the dramatic take on the real life The Stanford Prison Experiment (2015)! The film stars Billy Crudup as the real Dr. Philip Zimbardo , a psychologist who became famous for putting college-aged men in a fake prison in the basement of the psychology building in the summer of 1971, letting guards treat thes...

Join Alex and returning guest host Dr. Wind Goodfriend in a discussion of the psychological concepts in the uplifting but superficial film, Remember the Titans (2000)! We discuss whether the discussion and commentary in this "Based on a True Story" story holds up in our modern discussion on prejudice and race, dive deep into the Allport theory of contact and cooperation and the Sherif Robbers Cave...

Join Alex in an exploration of the themes and allegories — that have a psychological flair, of course — in The Matrix (1999) film franchise! In this episode, Alex dives into the Wachowski sisters' true meaning of the first film, which was a transgender allegory. He also explores the iconic religious allegory, as well as a discussion about simulation theory. Some other details are also discussed, l...

Join Alex and returning guest host Dr. Jordan Wagge (BlueSky: @jorowags.bsky.social ) as they take a closer look at the goofy Bill Murray comedy What About Bob? (1991). This Frank Oz classic that also stars Richard Dreyfuss as Dr. Leo Marvin is a wild ride in anxiety, therapy, and Freud jokes! Alex and Jordan officially start the Dr. Leo Marvin Haters Club and decide he is one of the worst people...

Join Alex and guest host Dr. Karen Brakke in a discussion of the various psychological concepts in the unofficial sequel to Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Project X (1987), starring Matthew Broderick and Helen Hunt. This film is fascinating for its portrayal of animal cognition, animal rights in research, and just how similar Broderick's character is just another Ferris Bueller! We also have an interes...

Join Alex in an renewed exploration of the memory issues and portrayal Memento (2000)! We first talked about this film all the way back in July 2019, in Episode 000 . In this episode, Alex dives a little deeper into the portrayal of anterograde amnesia and the ultimate outcome of the story, including the speculation about which character is telling the truth. This is truly a wonderful film that do...

Join Alex and returning guest hosts Dr. Jordan Wagge and Jason Spiegelman as the three dissect and discuss the two major American versions of the stage play and short story 12 Angry Men! The first major release was in 1957 , written and directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Henry Fonda. The second, made-for-TV movie, was released in 1997 , and starred several great actors, including John Lemmon, W...

Join Alex and guest host Dr. Karenna Malavanti in a discussion of the various psychological concepts in the wildly controversial film, Crash (2004)! It's controversial because even writer-director Paul Haggis doesn't think it should have won Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Oh, and the fact that each scene or connected vignette features truly awful human beings! But we wade into the controversy...

Join Alex and returning guest host Dr. Justine Egan-Kunicki in a discussion of the various psychological concepts in the classic prison film, The Shawshank Redemption (1994), a film based on a novella by Stephen King that doesn't have any horror or supernatural elements. Just good old fashioned, mid-century prison brutality! It is set in Maine, though... anyway, the episode explores psychological...

Join Alex and Dr. Crystal Steltenpohl in a discussion of the various psychological concepts in the crushing, but a poignant look at relationships and happiness, film The Hours (2002). The film stars Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore, and Meryl Streep as three women struggling with their mental health, relationships, and happiness, connected by the story written by the famous Virginia Woolf. Listen, Ni...

Join Alex and Virginia Commonwealth University undergrad Mehwish Safdar in a discussion of the various psychological concepts in the wildly unethical, but touching lark The Truman Show (1998). The film stars Jim Carrey, in a shift from his sillier roles earlier in the 90s, as the titular Truman Burbank. He's the real person in an elaborate reality show. Joining him are Ed Harris and Laura Linney a...

Join Alex and guest host Dr. Sara Bagley in a discussion of the psychological concepts in the wonderful film based on the book of the same name, written by Dr. Oliver Sacks, Awakenings (1990)! The film stars Robin Williams as a facsimile of Dr. Sacks and Robert De Niro in one of his strongest method roles. We discuss everything you wanted to know about L-Dopa and dopamine, among this wild trip bas...

Join Alex in a solo episode as he discusses the psychological concepts in a sleeper indie thriller directed by Steven Soderbergh, Unsane (2018). It stars Claire Foy as a woman suffering from Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from a stalker, but everyone at the health clinic thinks she's delusional, because who stalks these days, amirite? Anyway, it's a cautionary tale about believing women and...

Join Alex in a special episode of the podcast! In this ep, Alex hosts a Roundtable Discussion at the Annual Conference of the Midwestern Psychological Association , held virtually in 2021 due to the ongoing COVID pandemic. Several educators in psychology joined to discuss their film pedagogy. Here are their details: Sara Bagley , Lindenwood University Crystal N. Steltenpohl , University of Souther...

Join Alex and guest host Dr. Kiersten Baughman in a discussion of the psychological concepts in the poorly-acted but provocative BDSM LARP, 50 Shades of Grey (2015)! Starring Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan, this film really shows how a stalker can ultimately win: just be rich! Please leave your feedback on this post, the main site ( cinemapsychpod.swanpsych.com ) or on Facebook ( @CinPsyPod ). We...

Join Alex and returning guest host Dr. Wind Goodfriend in a discussion of the psychological concepts in the outrageous but important cult class film, The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)! We do the Time Warp again to discuss the sex, sexuality, and gender-bending concepts that are all over this wild musical. The message here is, don't dream it, BE IT! Check our Dr. Goodfriend's new Audible course,...

Join Alex and guest host Dr. Shana Southard-Dobbs in a discussion of the psychological concepts in the somber and illustrative film, Still Alice (2014)! Alzheimer's disease is front and center in this tour de force by Julianne Moore. Both Shana and I thought some of the aspects of the film came too close to home, but not for the memory loss, but that it happens to a college professor and cognitive...

Join Alex and guest host Dr. Will Ryan in a discussion of the psychological concepts in the whimsical fairy tale, Pleasantville (1998)! This film has so many lovely allegories, so we explore as many as we can in a short amount of time. Tobey Maguire and Reese Witherspoon are fantastic in these early roles of their careers, with William H. Macy doing a great job asking... "Where is my dinner?" Plea...

Join Alex and Anthony Zoccolillo as they discuss the great but problematic Rain Man (1988). These are some wonderful performances by Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman, but the autism portrayal was a product of its time. After you listen to this podcast episode, pull up a chair and watch The People's Court! Please leave your feedback on this post, the main site ( cinemapsychpod.swanpsych.com ) or on Fa...

Join Alex and guest host Michael Alexander in a discussion of the psychological concepts in the X-Men film franchise (2000-2019), films where the allegories for civil rights for minority populations and groups hit you like Magneto would hit you with a steel bar! We do also delve into the 90s cartoon and of course discuss the comic books that informed these films. Please leave your feedback on this...

Join Alex in a solo episode as he discusses the psychological concepts in a well-filmed but strikingly strange film The Lighthouse (2019). It stars Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe, ONLY, as we explore the descent (?) into madness when guilt, excessive drinking, and isolation make a formidable cocktail. This episode also represents a different delivery method, much like Episode 022/Fight Club, wi...

Join Alex and guest host Dr. Sully Coleman in a discussion of the psychological concepts in Stanley Kubrick's wild psychological horror The Shining (1980), a film where you get the sense something is wrong—perhaps it's all the ghosts in the hotel OR, and hear me out, it's Jack's unrelenting narcissism! Please leave your feedback on this post, the main site ( cinemapsychpod.swanpsych.com ) or on Fa...