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Episode 105: Defying Gravity is the Self-Actualization Anthem We All Needed — Wicked (2024) with Jill Swirsky
Join Alex and guest host Dr. Jill Swirsky as they enter the world of musical theater yet again, this time traveling to the land of Oz in Wicked (2024)! The film is an adaptation of the Broadway play, which was an adaptation of the novel by Gregory Maguire. We follow Elphaba, played by Cynthia Erivo, the eventual Wicked Witch of the West, on her journey as a child and young adult. Along the way, she learns about her true magical abilities but ultimately becomes the villain of Oz when she uncovers a terrible secret. Along for the ride is Ariana Grande’s Glinda (Galinda at the start!),…
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Episode 097: Using My Ambition and Bottom-Up Processing for Birding! The Big Year (2011) with Marc Klippenstine
Join Alex and returning guest host Dr. Marc Klippenstine for a personalized discussion on birding, bird-watching, and psychology: The Big Year (2011). The film stars comedy powerhouses Jack Black, Steve Martin, and Owen Wilson, as three men who love birding so much, they all attempt the Audubon Society’s “Big Year”. Birding is a hobby that relies on bottom-up and top-down processing, cooperation, friendship, and a little bit of intrinsic motivation! But what happens when ambition gets in the way of personal relationships? This question and more are discussed in a wonderful chat about the portrayal of birding in this film from a birder himself!…
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Episode 088: I Wasn’t Expecting to Be in This Movie! Inside Out 2 (2024)
Join Alex as he takes a solo look at the sequel to a film that lives in our hearts and our heads, Inside Out 2 (2024). While the film has a lot to live up to from its predecessor, this new entry into Riley’s head isn’t a slouch. A new dynamic and new emotions enter the picture as Riley turns 13 years old and beings puberty during a summer hockey camp. Of the new emotions, Anxiety (voiced by Maya Hawke), butts heads with Joy (voiced by Amy Poehler), and well, lots of wild and crazy events happen as they try to put the best self-concept of Riley forward.…
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Episode 036: Wait, the Prison Was a Metaphor? The Shawshank Redemption (1994) with Justine Egan-Kunicki
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 prison, institutionalization, and hope. It stars Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins in perhaps two of their best roles. You can’t help but smile as the end of the movie sweeps you away to Mexico!
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Episode 015: Self-Expansion Your Relationship with Your Computer! Her (2013) with Jeff Bowen
Join Alex and guest host Dr. Jeff Bowen in a discussion of the psychological concepts in Her (2013), another tour de force by Joaquin Phoenix (I suppose this show has become to the JP show by now…). We chat about how real a relationship with an OS could be–for me… I love my MacOS!
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Legal stuff:
1. All film clips are used under Section 107 of Title 17 U.S.C.…