Movies and Madness, Through a Psychiatrist’s Eyes | James Charney

James Charney is a psychiatrist, cinephile, professor, and author.

His latest book, “Madness at the Movies” examines the mental disorders by which Hollywood’s most infamously deranged characters (Travis Bickle from Scorcese’s “Taxi Driver”; Norman Bates from Hitchcock’s “Psycho”) are afflicted.

The book, written for a popular audience, is an extension of a beloved course (also entitled, “Madness at the Movies”) that he taught at Yale University for many years.

A physician by training, Dr. Charney is not only a lover of movies, but a faithful student of their history and a discerning judge of their merit. As you’ll see, his knowledge of film history is encyclopedic, and his passion for the art is infectious!

It was an absolute honor to speak with him and I can’t wait to watch all of the films he recommended!

In this episode, Dr. Charney and I discuss:

His exposure to the cinema at a young age; The importance of the movie theater in the 1950s (contrasted with its unimportance today); The communal experience of attending the theater; Being traumatized by horror films as a boy (and how that became the genre to which he later devoted much of his professorial career!); The greatest duos in film history; The best action films in the modern age; How action sequences are edited; How to keep the attention of an audience; How to watch and (really) appreciate a film; Musicals, then and now; If we are at a low ebb of creativity; Why we should all go back and watch “the classics”; How to become fully cultured in the arts; Where to view the oldies; Television v. Movies; The Sopranos; Succession; Breaking Bad; Aristotle and Fred Astair; Katherine Hepburn and Gene Kelly; and MUCH MORE!

Links to Dr. Charney’s stuff:

His book, "Madness At The Movies":
https://www.press.jhu.edu/books/title/12732/madness-movies

https://www.amazon.com/Madness-Movies-Understanding-Illness-through/dp/142144562X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=14X4H0ELCJS0M&keywords=madness+at+the+movies&qid=1685473991&sprefix=madness+at%2Caps%2C363&sr=8-1

Criterion Channel
https://www.criterionchannel.com

Mubi
https://mubi.com

Dr. Charney's brilliant wife, Diane Charney (a professor of French literature at Yale) also has a book available for purchase!

Check it out here:
https://www.amazon.com/Letters-Men-Diane-Joy-Charney/dp/1736020617/ref=sr_1_5?crid=172KUXEKE3JVK&keywords=Letters+to+men+of+letters&qid=1685541306&sprefix=letters+to%2Caps%2C3733&sr=8-5

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As for me…

I can be reached at finneranswake@gmail.com

Website: finneranswake.com

Instagram, on which shorter clips from my longer episodes (along with other sundry things) are posted: Daniel Ethan Finneran

Twitter: DanielEFinneran

MY WELLNESS, MEDITATION, AND **SLEEP AID** CHANNEL!

You have to check this out!

Pneumameditations.com

Youtube: @pneumabydanielfinneran

Available on all podcast streaming services.

Just search, “Pneuma by Daniel Finneran”. Listen and share with friends!

Please comment below with thoughts and suggestions!

With affection,
Daniel