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Chris Hegman Dr. Kyle Conlon Abnormal Psychology (004) 22 April 2013 Film Analysis As Good As It Gets Melvin Udall is a brash, insensitive, and lonely man from New York City. He takes pride in his work as a romance novelist and his innate ability to offend others. His disrespectful nature coupled with his diagnosis of obsessive-compulsive disorder, alienates nearly everyone around him. Melvin refuses to deviate from his daily routine which includes working in his home and attending the same restaurant every day. While attending the restaurant, Melvin requests the same waitress, Carol Connelly. Carols tolerance of Melvins attitude, eventually leads him to become attached to her. Although Melvin is resistant to change, several influential events force him to reconsider his life. When Melvins gay neighbor, Simon Bishop is injured, Melvin is forced to take care of Simons dog, Verdell. Melvins initial hatred towards the dog eventually turns into affection, as he becomes emotionally attached to Verdell. Melvins routine is also influenced when Carol stops attending work in order to take care of her son, who suffers from a chronic case of severe asthma. In order to return Carol to work, Melvin convinces his publisher to allow her husband, a medical doctor, to attend to Carols son. As Carols son receives medical attention, his health steadily increases, allowing Carol to return to work. Carol is initially unsure about accepting help from Melvin, questioning his intentions, but she openly expresses her gratitude for his kindness. When Simon returns from the hospital, Melvin is forced to return Verdell, which causes him to experience emotional distress. Verdell eventually becomes a link between the two neighbors, allowing them to become better acquainted. Simon, in time, finds that his medical expenses and the poor sales of his art have forced him into bankruptcy. Melvin

is asked to drive Simon to his parents house, so that Simon can ask his parents for financial assistance. Carol is also asked to attend, in order to alleviate the awkwardness of the situation. As the trip progresses it becomes apparent that despite their differences, the group develops a stronger relationship. Marvin and Carol grow especially close during the beginning of the trip, but Carols misunderstanding of Melvins odd tendencies, caused by his OCD, eventually causes her to question her relationship with Melvin. When the three return home, Carol states that she no longer wants to see him and Simon moves in with Melvin. Initially, Melvin is angered and confused by Carols reaction and seeks advice from Simon. Simon suggests that Melvin should pursue Carol and Melvin realizes that his love for her has caused his compulsions to disappear. Eventually, Melvin succeeds in convincing Carol that he truly does love her and that he can change. By the end of the movie, Melvin appears to be cured of his OCD, all thanks to his love for Carol. During the course of the film, Melvin express a number of symptoms relating to OCD. Melvins most observable obsession is his fear of infection. Compulsions related to this obsession include using a new bar of soap every time he washes his hands, washing his hands with scalding hot water, avoiding the touch of other people, bringing his own utensil to restaurants, and the disposal of his gloves after use in public. Melvin also displays several compulsion related to superstitious thoughts. Examples of these compulsions include the avoidance of walking on cracks, for fear of bad luck, and turning the light on and off five times when entering a room. Melvin also constantly checked his locks, fearing invasion. Throughout the film, Melvin displays certain tendencies that are more associated with OCPD, but can be related to symptoms of OCD. For example, Melvins need to organize everything, such as with his suit case and stacks of paper, is more characteristic of OCPD. Melvins rigidity and stubbornness to change his routine is also characteristic of OCPD (4th ed., text revision,

American Psychiatric Association, 2000). Axis I: Obsessive compulsive disorder Axis II: No Diagnosis Axis III: None Axis IV: Strained relationship with father, inadequate social support, living alone Axis V: 55 The diagnosis of obsessive compulsive disorder was given do to the determined and consistent presence of both obsessions and compulsions. One of Melvins obsessions was his fear of contamination. His fear of infection was both recurrent and persistent. In order to reduce the anxiety caused by this fear, Melvin participated in several ritualistic behaviors, his compulsions. These behaviors included excessively washing his hands and avoiding physical contact with people in public. Another reason for diagnosing Melvin with OCD is that both his obsessions and compulsions cause marked distress within his life (DSM-IV-TR). Despite his feelings for Carol, Melvins obsessive tendencies caused strain within their relationship on multiple occasions. For example, when they attended a restaurant with a strict dress code, Melvin forced Carol to wait for him as he bought a coat and tie. His persistence occurred despite the restaurant having both coats and ties readily available. Melvins compulsions are also time consuming, as seen when he takes a shower. The third criteria for diagnosing Melvin with OCD is his realization that his obsessions are excessive. He realizes that his symptoms are excessive because he understands that they can be reduced with the use of medication. Other anxiety disorders were not considered because Melvins anxiety is a symptom of his OCD. There was not enough criteria met to diagnose Melvin with major depression disorder (DSM-IV-TR). Melvin meets several of the criteria for obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, but does not meet the minimum number required for a diagnosis. Melvins rigidity, his

preoccupation with organization, and his excessive devotion to work are all symptoms of OCPD. Melvin also show signs of narcissistic personality disorder and avoidant personality disorder, but does not meet the recommended number of criteria for diagnosis (DSM-IV-TR). There is also no evidence to suggest that Melvin suffers from an intellectual disability. There is not enough information given throughout the film to suggest that Melvin suffers from any physical problems. Therefore, I decided to leave the third axis blank. Strong relationships play an important supporting role in the treatment of any disorder. The support of family members and friends could help improve Melvins recovery by advising him to take his medication, advising him to attend his psychiatric appointments, and by helping others around him to understand his condition. Melvins lack of relationships hindered his recovery during the first part of the movie, while his developing relationships during the end of the movie helped him to improve. Melvins relationship with his father is referenced as being a source of anxiety within his life. His fathers abnormally high expectation and his punishment of Melvin when he did not meet those expectations, could have been a developmental factor in the progression of Melvins OCD. I chose to give Melvin a GAF score of 55 because it is apparent that he suffers from severe symptoms. These symptoms are partially responsible for his social impairment and cause him a great deal of distress (Beidel & Bulik, 2012). Despite the rude attitude that Melvin displays, it is obvious that he is desperate to develop meaningful relationships. When Verdell is returned to Simon, Melvin is seen crying. Melvin also goes to great lengths to improve his relationship with Carol including paying for her sons medical care. Regardless of his symptoms, Melvin remains successful at his work and does not show any signs of harming himself or others. Although, it is possible that Melvins job could be influenced if he was not allowed to work from home.

Before Carol entered Melvins life, many people chose to avoid interaction with him. This avoidance was caused by a misunderstanding of Melvins condition. This caused Melvin to appear odd in the eyes of others. The accuracy of the films depiction of OCD varies throughout. I believe that the film succeeds best when depicting the length and trouble that an OCD patient will go through in order to maintain their belief system. For example, throughout the film Melvin avoids stepping on cracks. This excludes him from attending certain places. Melvin also goes through great lengths to keep himself clean. This involves allocating a great deal of time and money to the process. I believe that the film also accurately depicts how people view the symptoms of OCD. Throughout the movie, those surrounding Melvin view his actions as quirky or odd. Instead of trying to understand the reasoning behind his actions, they tend to either disregard them or avoid Melvin altogether. On the other hand, there are several areas within the movie that do not accurately depict OCD. At certain points throughout the film, Melvin tends to disregard his fear of contamination. He is seen willingly entering unknown environments, such as his neighbors apartment, holding a dog, and enters a cab with a sick child. A patient with obsessions about contamination would be unwilling do to anything that they believe could endanger their health and their beliefs are generally over exaggerated to a point beyond normal reasoning. Although these are small discrepancies, one large error is blatantly present towards the end of the film. As Melvins love for Carol grows, it appears that his symptoms all but disappear. This however is not realistic. OCD is a chronic disease that rarely remits without proper care (Beidel & Bulik, 2012). Even with the use of both medication and CTB, patients are not cured of OCD. Instead their symptoms are reduced. Although results can vary from patient to patient, when taking medication alone, on average patients only experience a reduction in symptoms ranging from

20% to 40 %. Even when receiving proper care, symptoms are not reduced immediately and there is chance for remission if treatment is stopped (Craighead and Nemeroff 634). Hollywood overlooked this fact, in order to support the idealization that love cures all, creating a better love story. Despite Hollywoods intentions, their misinterpretation of OCD will cause the general population to believe that symptoms of OCD can be easily overcome. When in reality, people with OCD struggle to overcome their obsessions, despite the fact that their obsessions cause them a great deal of anxiety. For the purpose of increasing the films humor, Hollywood chose to portray Melvin as brash and insensitive. Although Hollywood did not intend to portray these personality traits as symptoms of OCD, many people will mistake them for symptoms of OCD. Watching the film, I did not learn anything new about OCD. The film does succeed in accurately portraying many aspects OCD, but due to the films comedic nature, the seriousness of the disorder is generally diminished. This makes it hard to grow emotionally attached to the main character. Although he struggles throughout the film with his disorder, there is a general overlying sense that he will eventually overcome his struggles. Despite the films lack of emotional attachment, it did influence my perspective of mental disorders. It accomplished this by allowing me to see the intensions behind the main characters actions.

References Beidel, D. C., & Bulik, C. M. (2012). Abnormal psychology (2nd ed.). Boston: Pearson. Craighead, W. Edward., and Charles B. Nemeroff. "Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder." The Concise Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology and Behavioral Science. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2004. 633-35. Print. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-IV-TR. (4th ed.). (2000). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.