Identity is also a great movie that deals with psychological issues.

I don't want to spoil it for people who have not yet seen the movie, so will not go into the psychological elements included in the film.

Oded

Directed by Robert Redford and starring the Canadian actor Donald Sutherland, Mary Tyler Moore and Judd Hirsch, this film is as relevant and gripping today as it was when it was released in 1980.

This is one of my favorites...

David


Synopsis for Ordinary People (Courtesy www.imdb.com)

"I Simply am not There" - Patrick Bateman

In his book of the same title, Bret Easton Ellis’s description of a psychopath is frightening accurate and made American Psycho a great novel. Mary Haddon’s adaptation of the book into film is a little less convincing, but well worth seeing. for Christian Bale’s performance as Bateman.

The plot has Patrick Bateman as handsome, well educated and intelligent. He is twenty-seven and living his own dream. He works by day on Wall Street, earning a fortune.

 At night he descends into madness, as he experiments with fear and violence.

David

Mulholland Drive -- The
Impossible David Lynch

Even if Lynch’s films aren't
necessarily realistic, they are real in their representation of what life is: a
confusing, irrational series of random events that sometimes have little
purpose, and one makes their own interpretation of every event, giving their
life purpose personally.

As Lynch has said,

"Life is very, very confusing, and so films should be allowed to be too".

Lynch uses the first part of Mulholland
Drive to explore the role of that fantasy has in our experience coherent and
meaningful. The second part of the film is structured around the incessant
dissatisfaction of desire. As is seen in other Lynch films, this separation
between the experience of desire and that of fantasy accounts for – and is
accomplished by dramatic changes in the overall character of the shots between
the first and second parts of the film.

Mulholland Drive calls us into a
full immersion of fantasy, asking us to abandon logic - only in this way for
Lynch, can we achieve the impossible.

Bono wrote and recorded the title music for "Don't Come Knocking" in a just in time collaboration with Wenders.

Wenders' interesting account of this can be seen at:

http://www.interference.com/8575-wim-wenders-when-bono-comes-knocking/

David

A Beautiful Mind - The Purpose of Paranoia

Russell Crowe play the part pefectly of someone with Paranoid Schizophrenia. This is a truly beautiful film with excellent acting. It is all the more tragic, as in real life, John Nash's (played by Crowe) son is also schizophrenic, although not mentioned in the film.

What is the purpose of Paranoia?

See Dorothy Rowe's explanation at:

http://dorothyrowe.com.au/index.php?u=saga_paranoia.htm

David

Hello David

it is an exceptional movie, true story about an brilliant mathematician and unusual love, one of my favourites.

   Ania

Just watched "The Soloist", directed by Joe Wright, with Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr.
The story is about a journalist in search of a good story, who encounters a Juilliard-dropout-turned-schizophrenic musician. As background, the heart-breaking reality of homeless fallen angels in L.A. Fantasyland (a reality, I shall add, that doesn't differ much from that of other big cities).
The film is ambiguous in many ways, and IMHO ambiguity is a key aspect when I try to understand the complexity of schizophrenia victims.
Who helped whom? What are the boundaries of friendship, pity, guilt? Is being gifted a blessing or a curse? Whose rules actually work anyway?
I've heard the book is better than the film, as usual. But it's worth checking, specially for Foxx's excellent work.

"The machinist"

one of the best Bale's performances

Barbarella

Jane Fonda acts like a female James Bond and offers a representation of pure and free consciousness. As such, it makes comment not only on sexuality but also on the nature of life generally, on decision making, and on the problems of fear.

The character of Barbarella is psychologically beautiful and the story of Barbarella is told on many levels.

The Constant Gardener

THE CONSTANT GARDENER is a provocative, intelligent, humanistic and deeply moving film. It’s deeply psychological journey leads up to a tragic denouement.

Dorothy Rowe (psychologist) offers an interesting interpretation of this film at:

http://dorothyrowe.com.au/index.php?u=saga_beautiful_mind.htm

She concludes:

"For me a beautiful mind is not a mathematical mind but a wise mind. No doubt there are many wise mathematicians, but in this they are like ordinary mortals. A wise person is someone who is not haunted by the past but has learnt from it and has let the losses go; who plans for the future but is not wedded to those plans; who lives mostly in the present, mindful of what is happening. The past and the future are simply ideas. Only the present moment is real."

Mauvais Sang - Leos Carax

A very French style psychololical thriller.

In Paris in the near future. Aging thieves Marc and Hans owe money to a tough American woman who gives them two weeks to pay. They scheme to steal and sell a new serum for a disease that's killing lovers, but they need someone with quick steady hands. They recruit Alex, a disaffected youth who's breaking up with Lise, his 16-year-old girlfriend. In the few days before the theft, Alex becomes enchanted with Anna, Marc's young mistress. They talk, they play, they sing, but she's in love with Marc. Lise hasn't given up on Alex either, and she comes to Paris on the day of the theft. There are double crosses, a daring rescue, and, for Alex, a waiting plane.

"Fight Club"1999(directed by David Fincher; starring: E.Norton, B.Pitt, H. Bonham Carter) is one of the best!

"Running With Scissors" (2006) by Ryan Murphy is worth to watch.

Ania,

There is a company here in Geneva that sells DVDs. Their website is www.onedvd.ch. There's more than happy to offer a 10% discount to glocals members.

The parent site of this company can be seen at: www.dvdclash.com. All the films listed there are available from onedvd but at much lower prices.

David

Forget to add. The guy to ask for is Gil Malalel. He can be reached on Tel: 078 619 9209. He's ready to provide DVDs at rock bottom prices...

Ok, i will give him a call on Monday, thank you, by the way I discovered the uni library in Lausanne (Pl. Ripone), there are also some DVD’s available (also documentaries) and it is for free, but of course they do not have everything but it is possible to make a purchase proposal. Have a nice Sunday

Antichrist - Lars Von Trier

A psychological drams engineered to provoke.

Von Trier himself has stated that Antichrist has arisen from his battles with "depression".

The Danish director says that his psychodrama is literally the work of a sick man, but at the same tims claimed the title of 'world's best director' in front of the world's press in Cannes. Trier has said that his next project is working in his garden.

Charlotte Gainsbourg who plays a magnificent performance in this film says, "I've liked the idea of being too stable"

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/jul/17/charlotte-gainsbourg-antichrist-lars-von-trier

Gil Malalel was very nice, i need to prepare my purchase movie list, thank you again

Damage

A member of Parliament (Irons) falls passionately in love with his son's fiancée. They pursue their affair with obsessive abandon despite the dangers of discovery and what it would do to his complacent life and his son. Completely obsessed, he wants to give up his current lifestyle to be with her. She has no intention of allowing him to do this, preferring to have her marriage to the son as a cover. They are eventually discovered, and must deal with the damage. Based on the novel by Josephine Hart.(IMDb)

"Damaged People are Dangerous - They know they can Survive"- Binoche

In case anyone is into this type of movie.  The Tenant by Roman Polanski is playing this evening in Geneve - at VOC Voltaire Near Circque tram stop.  Psyco movie....

Dan

Sophie's Choice (1982)  by Alan J. Pakula - an incredibly beautiful psychomovie !

Hi David. If u read some other books (i am sure u did) by BE Ellis u will find Patrick Bateman do some apparitions ( for exemple he is the brother of one of the caracter in novels book "Zombie", he is one of the main caracter in his last book Lunar Park...). BE Ellis is a great author (Glamorama is a amazing book). We can compare Ellis with Auster ( psycho writers) and it's funny to see that they both have reccurents caracters who make some guest apparitions on their books. Thanks to these authors to give us so good shit!!!

PS: Sorry for my foolish english

Is Glamorama that good? I love Ellis, read AP, Less than Zero, Rules of  Attraction and Lunar Park, but never had the chance to read Glamo. 

a few i would recommend:

Alien - birth of the female heroine

Event Horizon - bit too Hollywood but it's worth watching

Solaris - a strange journey bringing back dead loved ones

The Fountain - acceptance of death

Abre los ojos - the original of Vanilla Sky (Tom 'Fudgepacker' Cruise flick)

Le scaphandre et le papillon  - true story, editor of Elle stays locked in his own body after an accident. Only contact with the outer world is one of his eyes he can blink with. 

Anything from David Cronenberg - Existenz, Videodrome etc.

A Scanner Darkly - your own self through drugs

Waking Life - lucid dreaming

and after watching some of these you could dive into these books before going to sleep:

anything from Philip K. Dick - Valis, UBIK, We can remember it for you wholesal etc...

Glamorama is great (my BE Ellis favorite)... But i remember (how could i forgert it?), 4 me, the most crazy-psycho-weird book is "Un tueur sur la route" (i think the original title is "silent terror(?)") by James Ellroy... O.M.G...this book comes straight from hell's fire!!! Speachless shit...

Thanx Nolan 4 ur advices, i will check some..

Right! youve all heard of honeymoon and some of u have had the great fortune of goin on it!

Now fasten your seatbelts for the movie " Bitter Moon " 1992.

Great performances by Peter Coyote, Hugh Grant and ofcourse the lovely Emmanuelle Seigner .

As always the director takes us in for a ride and what a ride!!

Yes you've guessed it ..that director happens to be Maestro Roman Polanski. Hats off please...

" I AM SAM " released in 2001!

This movie is just one of a kind!

Starrin Sean Penn, Michelle Pfeiffer and Dakota Fanning.

Yes i just managed 2 watch  one of your favourite movies! "Girl Interrupted" with 8 match sticks (4 for each eye) ..... such is the effect the movie had on me counsellor...

while the message was powerful, but there was something  horribly flat with the acting and the whole plot! 

The "cukoos nest" is brilliant and thats mainly due 2 Nicholson..A god of an actor

The Prozac nation one i havent seen yet so i'll keep u posted!

May i suggest a movie? thank u i will 

If youre gonna watch something twisted, then try watching "Ninth Gate"

yes u guessed it..another brilliant one by master Polanski...

In Inception a totem is an object that is used to test if we are in our reality (dream or non-dream) and not in another person's dream.

If glocals.com is a dream, and our profile, a dream within a dream, how can we be sure whose dream or reality we are in?

David

The Shining: effects of cabin fever; dream or reality; present or past; the look on the little boys face; redrum, redrum.  Not too much blood and gore but psychologically terrifying.

all of stephan king's  books- movies 

but yes, jack nicholson does a great job

and how about 

"The black swan" with Nathalie Porteman 

mother and daughter relationship

a girl who never grew up

all kinds of issues

but the music is great

Tchaikowski ..

The ultimate bogey man - Hannibal Lecter.

His analysis of Clarice and a Jungian interpretation.

One of my fav. this year 

mindbending movies -not mentioned (I think)

Eternal Sunshine Of the Spotless Mind

Being John Malkovich

This looks good and is based on a real life sociological or psychological experiment - The Stanford Prison Experiment

ooops forgot to mention possibly the best dysfunctional family movie ...Little Miss Sunshine

Yes a great funny movie with superb acting all round especially the little girl, the silent brother, mother and my favorite Alan Arkin.  And speaking of Arkin and Sunshine let's not forget Sunshine Cleaning - also a bit dysfunctional and bittersweet.

Didn't see the movie but read the excellent 'Braddock, The Rise of the Cinderella Man' by Jim Hague.

From the back cover: Called the "greatest fistic upset since the defeat of John L. Sullivan by Jim Corbett", James Braddock's victory over Max Baer to become the boxing Heavyweight Champion of the world capped off one the greatest upsets in sporting history. As a 10-to-1 underdog, he also triumphed beyond the ring, captivating a nation that had lost hope during the Great Depression, as his rise from obscurity to champion became the stuff from which legends are made.

Braddock's dream of greatness had crashed with the stock market; his heartbreaking loss to lightweight champ Tommy Loughran came at the onset of the economic knockdown that defined a generation.  Broke and scraping to get by, he made a comeback that wasn't about glory or pride, only his willingness to do whatever it took to support his family, so he fought - and when Braddock started to win people noticed.

An icon to the downtrodden and the destitute, he was called the Cinderella Man, but that was an understatement. His life was a longshot, a true Rocky story that held up a mirror of hope to a troubled nation in search of inspiration. James Braddock was one of the masses, and when he saw that the odds were against him he stepped into the ring and beat them.

You can look inside at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Braddock-Rise-Cinderella-Jim-Hague/dp/B000IMV8BA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1306217194&sr=1-1

A rather critical review of the movie and portrayal of the characters and the period by my favorite sports writer Dave Zirin here: http://www.counterpunch.org/zirin06212005.html

Lot of 'psycos' in Catch 22 probably my favorite movie of all time as I break up in stitches each time I watch (how many times I can't count).  Even watching it again recently after 20 years (?) my eyes fill with tears of laughter.

Markist (post 55),

Ron Howard's "Cinderella Man" show the most violent footage
boxing in cinema's history. Crowe had a lot of training to do
for this film as most of the boxers he was pitted against
were professional boxers.

The odds that he would win in the final contest against
the formidable Max Baer were next to none.

A rather positive criticial review of the film at:

http://bit.ly/mAABYf 

In a book I read (fiction I believe) a musician is asked about critics.  He replies to the poser of the question whether he has ever seen a statue raised for a critic!

As I said, I haven't seen the movie, and I find both critiques give a good sense of the movie (though they might disagree) and more importantly the Braddock story.  Zirin's article inspired me to by the book I mentioned and I highly recommend it.

Zirin is an excelllent writer on American sports (discussing the NFL lockout currently, sports history and interviews with veteran sports reporters, the controversy of the gay slur of basketball star ?, college sports, political sportsmen and much more) and can be found here: http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/05/12-9 or here: http://www.counterpunch.org/zirin04032004.html here: http://www.counterpunch.org/zirin12312009.html, and here: http://socialistworker.org/2011/05/17/refusing-to-be-silent

But this is a forum about movies and I've hijacked it (but only just for a short while!) - mea culpa.  I'll try to be a good sport in future.

Eating Raoul - 'black' comedy.

Well directed film with excellent actors, Jean Reno and Nathalie Portman,
from French film director, Luc Besson.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Munchausen_by_proxy

thanks efverybody for your great input.  Here goes a few :   

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Repulsion 

Polanski's first movie directed in English with a very young Deneuve sinking

into  schizophrenia.  Absolutely brilliant!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Celebration 

A Danish moviel (original title Festen) about incest.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Night_Porter

A very controversial movie by italian film-maker Liliana Cavani about a

sadomasochistic relationship between a Nazi camp survivor (Charlotte

Rampling) and her tormentor (Dick Bogarde).

The three movies listed above are to be seen in good company :-)  

.

Some obvious ones: Misery (Kathy Bates)/ Talented Mr Ripley (Matt Damon)

The Last Supper (Cameron Diaz) black humour but based around psychogames

Boxing Helena (Sherilyn Flynn)

Wow!! This list is a goldmine 

I would like to add John Cassavetes, an independent master film maker, screen writer and actor whose films are still challenging american film industry in their realism and documentary feel. 

I especially recommend "A Woman Under the Influence (1974)", starring Gena Rolands (Cassavetes' wife in real life), as a disturbed wife and mother, whose madness is treated in great complexity. Cassavetes genuine interest in human behavior and needs is un-compromising and he brilliantly manages to raise questions about social structure through madness. The movie, to which Cassavetes couldn't find funding and had to mortgage his house, won many awards and is considered to be Cassavetes' best.

If you liked this movie, I'd recommend also "Faces" and "Husbands", by Cassavetes as well.

Happy viewing 

Daphna

Hear After

Clint Eastwood directs an interesting and gripping film about three people touched by death. Eastwood provides no answers.

Excellent performances by Matt Damon and Cécile de France. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1212419/

There are many films with interesting psychological aspect....

But Black swan iis very interesting.

The story of Nina who lives in a closed-world, only dedicated to dance and no more.You don't see her with out-of-dance-world-friends.

The relationship with her mum, that is not normal for an adult woman, the emancipation.

The other woman, very realistic and interesting theme : when you are interesting into a man, there is always a b*** to take you

The tension between her and Vincent Cassel, a very ambigue relationship

The obscession of perfection, etc...

Many thanks Tsatsa for this recommendation.

La FNAC in Rive is currently offering the Black Swan DVD
at a very special price. I'll be watching it this weekend!

David 

Perhaps you should rent it instead of buying. It's a weird film. Not everyone likes it but it will leave an impact.

Then again, if you buy it you can watch that special scene with Natalie and Mila whenever you feel like it.

;-) You recommand for the scene between Natalie and Mila `?

Men always the same ;-)

It is right that not everybody can like this movie, I think it touches women and male with sensitivity because you are far away here from the big hero with mussles who drink his beer, etc...;-)

Here is another movies. A beautiful story, "The Road" shares the premise of the novel on which it is based: a father  and his young son struggle to survive a number of years after an unspecified, devastating cataclysm has destroyed civilization, killed all plant and animal life, and obscured the sun; only remnants of mankind remain alive, reduced to scavenging or cannibalism.

A 'must see' film in my opinion.