Click Here To Read: Lust, Caution, a film directed by Ang Lie reviewed by Anita Weinreb Katz.
Category: Movies
Richard Gottlieb on “Where the Wild Things Are”
Click Here To Listen To: A discussion of the movie version of “Where the Wild Things Are,” Maurice Sendak’s Caldicott Award-winning children’s book, with Patrick Rogers of the Rosenbach Museum, psychiatrist Richard Gottlieb, and Vanity Fair writer Bruce Handy on the WHYY website on October 16, 2009. Please wait a few seconds for the file to load.
Trauma and Transference in “Slumdog Millionaire”
by Herbert H. Stein (from the PANY Bulletin Summer, 2009)
Slumdog Millionaire is a wonderful example of life imitating art; or, perhaps of life riding on the heels of art. The film, taken from the novel Q and A1, is a rags to riches tale of a poor orphan from the slums who wins the grand prize on the Indian version of “Who Wants to be a Millionaire.” It has had its own rags to riches story. An independent film made with a view to DVD distribution wins worldwide awards, culminating in the Oscar for best film of 2008.
Perhaps as analysts we should not be surprised that this film about an underdog which is itself a successful underdog should have in its fabric a childhood Oedipal fantasy, the ultimate underdog drama. Continue reading Trauma and Transference in “Slumdog Millionaire”
Hannibal Reviewed by Harvey Roy Greenberg
Click Here to Read: Hannibal Reviewed by Harvey Roy Greenberg. Hannibal and most of the other films cited in Dr. Greenberg’s review are available either through Netflix, Ebay, or Amazon.com, as well as special internet sites. Dr. Harvey Roy Greenberg, Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University, publishes widely on cinema, media, and popular culture. Other reviews and essays can be found at his website, http://www.doctorgreenberg.net. Dr. Greenberg welcomes comment, criticism, and further discussion, of his reviews.
The Enduring Power of “King Kong” (1933)
by Herbert H. Stein
When the new blockbuster remake of King Kong came to theaters a few years ago, I thought I would take a closer look at the original film. Most of the monster pictures of the past are relatively forgotten, but somehow Kong has held its place in our imagination. I remember reading many years ago that it outrated nearly all other old films on New York City television. How many of us associate to Kong when we think of the Empire State Building? Without Kong, Fay Wray would be known only to movie trivia buffs. In fact, a few years later, the “blockbuster” has faded into the lists of films we can scroll through on television while the clumsy, grainy original still holds an iconic spot in many of our minds. What I found when I examined the classic Kong was that that is not an accident. Continue reading The Enduring Power of “King Kong” (1933)
Review of the Movie “Munich” by Arlene Kramer Richards
Fifth European Psychoanalytic Film Festival
Season 2, Episode 5 of Be’Tipul
Taming Male Envy in “Jurassic Park”
by HH Stein
(continuing with the sci fi theme this spring and summer (May: The Day the Earth Stood Still; June: Independence Day; July: Men in Black)
Psychoanalysis is well known for its concept of penis envy, but the corresponding male envy of a woman’s ability to bear children is less publicized although certainly no less important. Edith Jacobson addressed this issue in a 1950 paper entitled “Development of a Wish for a Child in Boys.” Jacobson’s paper refers to a point in the first two to three years of childhood when children are fascinated by the magic of pregnancy and birth. She writes about a little boy’s envy of his powerful mother and her god-like ability to create life. Interestingly, Jacobson’s ideas are represented in an unlikely place, Steven Spielberg’s film, Jurassic Park. Continue reading Taming Male Envy in “Jurassic Park”
The Movies On My Mind: Bum Trip: O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Click Here To Read: The Movies On My Mind: Bum Trip: O Brother, Where Art Thou?, directed and written by Ethan and Joel Coen, reviewed by Harvey Roy Greenberg. O Brother, Where Art Thou?, and most of the other films cited in Dr. Greenberg’s review are available either through Netflix, Ebay, or Amazon.com, as well as special internet sites. Dr. Harvey Roy Greenberg, Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University, publishes widely on cinema, media, and popular culture. Other reviews and essays can be found at his website, http://www.doctorgreenberg.net. Dr. Greenberg welcomes comment, criticism, and further discussion, of his reviews.