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After hearing the Boston accent in Good Will Hunting, Mike and Ryan play a game and try to guess what accent or impression the other is attempting. It's very bad, and you can skip this and we won't be upset. Thanks.

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Mike embarrasses him self with an impersonation of Robin Williams. It's very very bad. Ryan and Mike talk about Rapper Big Sean, and the backlash he has received for making his mental health public. The guy opine that we should start by believing someone as our first reaction, and rushing to judge someone is the opposite of where we should be headed. 

The breakdown of Good Will Hunting gets interesting as Ryan and Mike's opinion on the portrayal of the Therapist, Sean, slightly differs. Mike longs for a more personal relationship with his Therapist, while Ryan notes the importance of the professional relationship and what the goals of Therapy are. 

Synopsis: Will Hunting (Matt Damon) has a genius-level IQ but chooses to work as a janitor at MIT. When he solves a difficult graduate-level math problem, his talents are discovered by Professor Gerald Lambeau (Stellan Skarsgard), who decides to help the misguided youth reach his potential. When Will is arrested for attacking a police officer, Professor Lambeau makes a deal to get leniency for him if he will get treatment from therapist Sean Maguire (Robin Williams).

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Deleted Scenes: Instant Expert Edition

We discussed how experts can sometimes get diagnosis wrong in our episode on John Green's Turtles All The Way Down. In the spirit of that conversation, we play a little game called Instant Expert.

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After Mike does a terrible impersonation of an angsty teenager, Ryan and Mike acknowledge that the theme of this book hits close to home for the both of them. They give us a heads up that the format of the show will be a little different, and they won't be doing a lighter 2nd half; there's too much to discuss about this spot on portrayal of intrusive thinking and OCD ( Obsessive Compulsive Disorder ).

They talk about the way Aza's obsessive thoughts are interrupting her daily life, and how she and those around her react to that. We get some further insight into Mike's battle with Depression and Bipolar Disorder, and the central reasons he attends Therapy on a continuing basis. We also find out that a whopping 94% of the US population report intrusive thoughts, and Ryan, even as a Therapist, is no exception.

Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Aza never intended to pursue the mystery of fugitive billionaire Russell Pickett, but there’s a hundred-thousand-dollar reward at stake and her Best and Most Fearless Friend, Daisy, is eager to investigate. So together, they navigate the short distance and broad divides that separate them from Russell Pickett’s son, Davis. 

Aza is trying. She is trying to be a good daughter, a good friend, a good student, and maybe even a good detective, while also living within the ever-tightening spiral of her own thoughts. 

Buy Turtles All The Way Down by John Green

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Deleted Scenes

In a scene from Mindhunter that didn't get airtime, two grizzled old veteran cops are way too old for common mental health myths

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Mike and Ryan offer opinions on the glorification of serial killers in pop culture. They look at psychopathy and sociopathy through the lens of Netlfix's Mindhunter and strive to breakdown the how and why for people with Anti Social Personality Disorder. Mike and Ryan end up in a debate about whether or not, Holden Ford, is a sociopath. 

Synopsis: Today, we are covering The Netflix series, Mindhunter. Based on the real-life work of former FBI Agent John Douglas. Starring Jonathan Groff as Holden Ford, Holt McCallany as Bill Tench and Anna Torv as Dr Wendy Carr 

Set in the late 1970’s, Holden Ford, a hostage negotiator for the FBI, is put out to pasture and assigned the Job of teaching Cops around the country about criminal motive, with agent Bill Tench. While traveling the country, Ford’s curiosity surrounding the psyche of what he calls “sequence killers”, gets the best of him. Under the nose of his superiors, Ford starts interviewing, Ed Kemper, a man who is serving a life sentence for indescribable crimes.

Ford believes he is learning valuable information that could help the FBI solve similar crimes and save lives. His partner Bill begrudgingly goes along with him, but eventually sees the same importance in the interviews as Ford does. As the FBI embraces the program, Ford, Tench and their outside consultant, Dr Wendy Carr are able to interview several of these “Sequence Killers”, and build the foundation for modern serial-killer profiling.

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Ryan and Mike pause a moment to acknowledge that they are in fact straight white males, and being so, have a limited and possibly narrow perspective on this particular subject. They hope their perspectives as a Therapist and a mental health advocate can offer something to the conversation.

Inspired by this raw and real performance by Hannah Gadsby, Ryan and Mike look at the theme of identity; who we see ourselves as--and are we ok with how others see us? The other theme that strikes them is shame as a result of our feeling of identity. Hannah, gives us a first hand, and very real view into these themes, and like all the issues and themes on Pop Psych 101 they need understanding.

Ryan, offers up some embarrassing moments from his childhood that helped shape him into the man he grew to be. Mike talk about goobers.

Synopsis: In the 2018 Netflix comedy special Nanette, comedian Hannah Gadsby starts out her set with fairly standard jokes about coming out as a lesbian and what it was like for her growing up in Tasmania. 

She shares important lessons we can learn from art history and whether or not creativity means you must suffer. Over the course of her special however, she begins to acknowledge that these self deprecating jokes are insufficient in letting her tell and fully take care of her story. She shares the stark reality of what it was like for her in coming out and how she was treated and ultimately abused several times over the course of her life, just for being herself. 

She challenges the audience to sit with their own tension and to not let anger or laughter cover it up. As a result, Hannah admits she needs to quit comedy as it doesn't allow her to fully embrace and deal with her trauma.

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To highlight our awareness of the shortcomings displayed by the character Drew in the Movie Tully, Mike and Ryan do some stand-up comedy, and lay into him a little bit.

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 In This Episode

Synopsis: Today, we are covering the 2018 film, Tully. Starring: Charlize Theron as Marlo and Mackenzie Davis as Tully

Marlo is a New York suburbanite who's about to give birth to her third child. Her husband, Drew, is loving and works hard, but remains clueless about the demands that motherhood puts on his wife. When the baby is born, Marlo's wealthy brother sees her becoming overwhelmed and hires a nighttime nanny named Tully to help his sister handle the stress. Hesitant at first, Marlo soon learns to appreciate all that Tully does -- forming a special bond with her new, lifesaving friend.

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Deleted Scenes

Another bit of fun for us here at Pop Psych 101. This time, Ryan sends Mike through a literal emotional roller coaster. Mike has to tell his story as if one of the emotions from the movie Inside Out were running his control board.

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Music

 "Reign" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)