Movie Project – Full Metal Jacket
This project helps you to see the relevance of psychology in everyday life as it is depicted in the movies. For this project, you will apply a wide variety of psychological concepts to a popular feature film. Your final product will be a 3-4 page paper (double spaced) reviewing the events in the film from a psychological perspective.
When you begin analyzing your film I recommend you watch it for “fun” first. Keep a note pad near by and make notes about psychological concepts that readily catch your attention during this viewing. Then watch the film again (or several times) with the intent of analyzing it. Prior to the second viewing I recommend you review the relevant text chapter(s) on the issues you notice during the first viewing (for example, what type of psychological condition does one of the characters display). This will better prepare you to be a critic during the second viewing. You might also want to use your VCR/DVD counter and note where you are in the movie when you make your personal comments. This will also help you when you start to get into the writing of your paper.
When you begin your analysis remember you can discuss the primary story line, techniques the director uses to emphasize points made by the film, the behaviors/attitudes of the characters in the story, or some of each. For example, why does the director use various senses to get viewer involved in the movie? How does the director accurately or inaccurately apply abnormal psychology to make the story line interesting? Your mastery of this project will be reflected in your thoroughness and how well you present the psychological concepts you choose to discuss.
This is all the information that was given about the project.