A Psychologist Goes to the Movies

by Alex Swan, The Great Courses

Movies have the astonishing ability to show us our world in a whole new light. They can help us understand tough concepts and even allow us to walk in someone else’s shoes. In particular, as Alexander Swan has discovered through his work with his students, movies can enlighten us about the workings of our own minds.

In the six lectures of A Psychologist Goes to the Movies, taught by Dr. Swan, you’ll see what films can tell us about the human mind, from the experience of amnesia to the ethics of psychological research and so much more. Featuring six movies from a variety of genres, styles, and periods, these lectures will give you the opportunity to explore the principles of psychology and consider fascinating neurological theories through the immersive magic of the silver screen.

From “Office Space” to “A Clockwork Orange” to “Inside Out,” the films featured in this course will demonstrate the inner workings of the mind in ways that will surprise and intrigue you. And not only will you probe these films for their psychological insights, but you’ll also gain a better understanding of the way movies achieve their vision through the lens of psychology and enrich your overall filmgoing experience.

Genres: Nonfiction, Psychology

Audible Audio

Published September 18, 2025

Reviews

[Stacy B · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

Some very interesting information.

[Abdul Alhazred · Rating 3 out of 5]

These bite sized (podcast sized?) Great Courses audiobooks are usually a big drop in quality and seriousness from the longer material, but this one was pretty good. The selection is pretty varied; Memento, Lucy, A Clockwork Orange, Inside Out, Office Space and perhaps most on the nose - The Stanford Prison Experiment.

Speaking of which, a good sign of a quality production is actually mentioning how Zimbardo's "experiment" wasn't one, and how much he was pulling strings as a supposed observer. One of my personal bugbears given how he made a career on a shitty experiment and we're now stuck with countless textbooks that bring this up as some breakthrough discovery with far less skepticism.

We get memory and developmental psychology in Inside Out, behaviorism in A Clockwork Orange, memory formation in Memento, organizational psychology in Office Space. It's a pretty full spectrum of psychology topics with some decently deep cuts for a general audience. Recommended.

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting I would recommend it’s especially interesting for somebody that wants to be a counselor and how movies play into our psychology Also mentions office space one of my all-time favorites. Christina might like this book because she introduced me to that movie.

[Jillian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute and investigative look at psychology tropes in movies! This lecture series/audiobook made my psychology heart sing. I enjoyed listening to Dr. Swan’s narrative commentary and psychoanalytical takes. This book gave me a new list of movies to go watch.
4.5/5 ⭐️

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun coarse. A clinical psychologist reviewed several movies and evaluates their premises to the science. I have see this done with showing how movies are following the history of events, but never with psychology. This was well worth it.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

pretty good- would have preferred some more classic movies ( Vertigo, Psycho, etc.) but this is a nice set of films.

[Toni · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting but I’ve read about most of these little insights into the movies mentioned with the exception of the Pixar cartoon ‘Inside Out’ - this was a ‘new’ bit of trivia.

[Adri G.M. · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5* I was so excited to dive into this and see movies through a different lense, but sadly it didn't deliver, imo.

[Christy N. · Rating 3 out of 5]

really enjoyed this from a psychological perspective, I likely would have enjoyed it more if I had seen most of the movies more recently. Definitely worth a listen.