“Smashed” Film Analysis

Analysis of a Film I: Smashed Writing Assignment

Smashed is an independent film that depicts how young adults struggle socially, emotionally, and professionally when addicted to alcohol. As mentioned in class, alcohol dependence can lead to many hindrances within one’s normal life, and even though one may appear to be “functional,” the body and mind will eventually break down. The film attempts to demonstrate how difficult it really is to “be off the wagon” and follows the life of Kate’s fall and eventual commitment to being sober. Your assignment is to link the film (with clear evidence) to what we scientifically know about alcoholism’s symptomology, general maladaptive behaviors, and a clear need for recovery by Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). In this film analysis, please adhere to the following guidelines:

Introduction: Based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition Text Revised (DSM-V TR) symptoms from class, please liken Kate’s behavior to six of the stated criteria. In this section, no sources are needed (except maybe the DSM-V, if you want practice), so you are simply providing general instances of how Kate meets these criteria (the in-depth film analysis will be below).

Behavioral Analysis of Kate’s Problems: Based your introduction, you want to further delve into how Kate fits your criteria, but you also want to include a.) how the film effectively supports your criteria (you must cite the film in proper format, see below) as well as provide scientific research that empirically supports how such problematic symptoms have been addressed in the scientific community (in other words, you need evidence to back up your claim that Kate’s behaviors are in fact a serious mental health concern). In your linkage of the film to psychological theory, you must have at least five primary sources. The first of these sources is the film, in which you are citing it along proper American Psychological Association (APA) guidelines whenever discussing your evidence of stereotype formation in the film. The other three primary sources should be from empirical journals, in which you need to demonstrate literature that explores each symptoms. Information from your sources should also be cited abased on APA guidelines.

Conclusion: By the end of your film, you see how organizations like Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) has been successful for some, but that process might take some time. Discuss how this process does take time for those who suffer from alcohol dependence in the real world. What social and professional factors might hinder a willingness to recover? Although you again want to link Kate’s experiences to this topic (again citing in APA format), you do not have to provide additional sources (but they may in fact help with what you are trying to say).