AJANS UNIVERSITE – Efe ALTAY
Translated by Begüm ERGİNBAY
Moving to USA to specialize in the field of psychiatry after graduating from İÜ İstanbul Faculty of Medicine, Fuat Ulus identifies himself as a “movie addict”. Directing his works towards this field, Ulus is specialized in the field of cinema therapy. Saying that groups of five to seven patients are treated with approximately 8 sessions of group therapy, Ulus said that “ Every four of five people identify therapy as entertaining and educational; express that they found themselves at therapy.” In the sessions, movies or parts of the movies, chosen by specialist according to diagnoses, are watched as a group. At the end of the session, speeches are made about the movies with the direction of specialist.
Touching upon the importance of choice of patients, Ulus continued: “Movie therapy cannot be applied to everyone. It is important to choose the patients who need rehabilitation and love watching movie.” Stating that movie therapy in contrast to bibliotherapy which is identified as a technic in which a person supplies psychological support for himself/herself by reading about his/her issues, is shorter and more effective, Ulus expressed the difference between two treatment with these words: “ Bibliotherapy was applied in USA around 1930-1940. This is now replaced with movies. Therapy, in this way, reached to more economic level. Sometimes it is enough to show some parts of the movies instead of the all. Visual support becomes more sufficient.
Charade Against Injustice
Identifying stress as fear of losing control and saying that fear of losing determines stress level, Ulus showed the movie of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest novel written by Ken Kesey, shot by Milos Forman. Leading role played by Jack Nicholson, movie takes place in a mental hospital where there is no freedom. Pretending to be mentally ill to get out of jail, protagonist of the movie Randle Patrick McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) creates sublimation which is identified in psychology as encumbered desires’ transference to socially acceptable channels.
In the movie, McMurphy who wants to watch a baseball game, faces an obstacle of Mildred Ratched (Louise Fletcher) and cannot get a permission of watching the match which is said to be necessary in the hospital. In return, he starts to narrate the match in the manner and pace of a narrator. McMurphy feels satisfied for both retorting the authority and going against this with a charade. Prof. Dr. Fuat Ulus asserts that effect of this kind of humour in psychiatric treatment for similar patients is undeniably good.
Türkçe versiyonu: SİNEMA TADINDA PSİKOTERAPİ