Week 11 - Schindler's List

Schindler's List

Plot 

This film follows Oskar Schindler, a German businessman who arrives in the Krakow Ghetto looking to make it big during World War II. We slowly see his priorities change as the Nazis began to kill his Jewish workers.

Oskar Schindler - Big 5 Personality Review

Schindler is a charismatic man, who initially nothing much to his name. His charisma alone brought him to be a huge hit among the influential Nazi members, Schindler easily became close friends with them. 

If we were to analyze his personality with the Big 5, I would definitely score him as having high in extroversion. We can see Schindler is a master of communication as in the beginning of the film we see how well he connects with others. He is portrayed mostly as a talkative, influential, high in energy, the life of the party, assertive and also flirtatious man. 

"PARTAYYYY"

High openness to experience would mean one appreciates novel ideas, art and also adventure while being intellectually curious as well. It can be see that Schindler enjoys the adventure of starting a business in Krakow, having the entrepreneurial spirit of starting something that hasn't been done before despite not having the finances that he needed. He's a crafty man who is able to invent new ways of approaching a situation, by getting Jewish investors to bet their money on him as he starts up his enamelware factory. 

"Schindler's enamelware factory." 

One could say that he is creative and imaginative for being able to pull together a company the way he did. Coming to Krakow was also a huge risk for Schindler since he didn't have much to begin with, but being high in openness means he's more willing to take that risk, he came in with the mentality of winning big despite the chances of it. 

"Go big or go home."

I would score Schindler lower on conscientiousness as he is spontaneous and adaptable. Situations during the war change every few weeks, even days, and being able to adapt to the situation presented is one of the reasons that Schindler is able to be so successful. 

Since running a business is more efficient with someone who is more conscientious, he hires Itzhak Stern to run his company for him to keep track of the details of his company, important dates and important people, and also for arranging bribes and manpower for him. 

Stern proves to be a great asset for Schindler and also a good friend.

One of the times he was forced to adapt was when Stern left his work card at home and was almost sent away on a train. Schindler came by and used his power and contacts to threaten the people at the station when they wouldn't cooperate. 

Schindler got to the station just on time and managed to get Stern back due to his spontaneous adaptability. If he were to follow protocol and waited, he might never see Stern ever again.

I would also rate him as scoring quite a fair bit on neuroticism, as he tends to portray his negative emotions easily when he is stressed, angered, or even when he doesn't get what he wants. This form of aggressive neuroticism could be tied in to masculinity, where men are expected to be assertive, powerful, and dominant. The kind who barges in and takes control of the situation, by hook or by crook. Maybe this is why Schindler is okay with bribes and manipulation, or it may simply be the norm at that point of time.  

"Portable wealth for the coming months"

Oskar Schindler's level of agreeableness is also one of the interesting parts of his personality, it is subjective and I feel it evolves across the film. In the beginning, he is portrayed to be this man who is in Krakow only to do business, willing to do anything to get to the top. He seems cold when he does business, and often gets things to go his way. 

The cold man slowly portrays the warmth that he has in his heart as he shows more compassion and care towards his workers and Jewish people in general. 

In the beginning he sees his workers as just his workers who make money for him, using usefulness and productivity as main measures. 

Later on however, he slowly sees them as human beings, this is especially so after the liquidation of Krakow happened. Schindler saw the inhumane treatment that was passed on to the Jews, and I think that event was significant in shaping him into the compassionate man he is at the later parts of the film. 

"Schindler as he observes the liquidation."

A Jewish lady heard rumors about Schindler's factory, that it was a safe haven for Jews, and she begged him to take in her parents to ensure their safety. 

Schindler tells her that he doesn't care about the people or want to do good, that he only cares if his employees can produce for him. He raises his voice and the lady was so afraid and disappointed as she runs out of his office crying. 

Despite him saying that, he went to Stern and requested for the lady's parents. "Perlman, husband and wife." He says. 

"The Perlman couple entering Schindler's factory." 

He shows further compassion when he decides to buy all the workers with the wealth that he has accumulated, instead of letting them be sent to their deaths in concentration camps. He gets Stern to compile a list of all the workers that he could get, the list consists of more than 1000 names, more than 1000 lives.

The man of compassion decided to go for a different mission. In the beginning, money was all that was on his mind, getting rich and having profits was all he cared about. As he spends his days in Krakow, it wasn't about the money anymore. He made it a point to treat the Jewish community as human beings instead of just workers or manpower, and to save as many lives as he could.

Schindler saved more than 1000 lives by placing them under his care in his factory, hence the term "Schindler's Jews". 

Week 10 - Hunt for the Wilder People

Hunt for the Wilder People

Plot 

This film follows Ricky Baker and Hector as they were running away from the people of Child Welfare Services after soon after the person who took them in, Bella, has passed away. A manhunt began after finding out that the two of them went missing.  

Ricky Baker 

Ricky is a city boy who has been to several homes assigned by the Child Welfare Services. After being abandoned as a child, he was taken in by the CWS, and he has had some history with crime and bad behaviors, and because of that, he had been labeled as "a handful" and "a real bad egg". 

Labeling and Identity

When we label the child instead of targeting to alter the behavior, the child may feel like he IS a bad child, a handful, or even a real bad egg. Once a child assumes the identity, it becomes a core part of them, and they act accordingly. If they don't, then cognitive dissonance of one's identity will happen and anxiety comes in. 

If the child thinks :"I should behave well and take care of others"  

But still assumes the identity:

"I am a bad egg"

Then there will definitely be cognitive dissonance there. What's important is that the child is loved and cared for unconditionally, and that we do not label them. Instead, we should experience them wholly as a person and allow ourselves to discuss about their behaviors with them.

Abandonment

Any child who has been abandoned by their parents without a good reason, be it physically or emotionally, will experience psychological confusion or pain. Parents are supposed to be the people whom a child trusts the most, and if that trust is broken, then there would be strong but inaccurate beliefs that arise from this experience. 

Beliefs are personal representations on how an individual see the world, which may be true or false. For a child, abandonment may cause them to have beliefs such as :

"I'm not good enough"

"Nobody loves me" 

"I'm not important"

"Nobody cares"

In the case of Ricky, being labeled and also being treated like he's unwanted, it reinforces the beliefs that he has about his own self-worth and value. 

"Child Welfare Services shouting at Ricky and threatening him."

Beliefs cause dissonance as well, if one thinks "Nobody loves me" and someone happens to come along and provides him with love and caring, he may be confused or resistant against that love.

One would have two courses of action, which is that one might want to defend his belief, and this can be done by discounting the love that was given. 

"It's just that the person pities me, she doesn't really love me"

"Actors, actors everywhere"

"It's just a one time thing"

This could be the case when Ricky first set foot into Bella's farm. He was greeted with such love and enthusiasm, but did not care much to respond. This may be his inner monologue as he was experiencing that moment.

"Ricky walked around and went back into the car, ignoring Bella"

One could also adopt a new belief, such as "People love and care about me" slowly growing and reinforcing it, replacing the old belief.

"It may be one person, but she cares about me"

"I deserve love as well"

"I'm worth caring for"

In the case of Ricky Baker, he met Aunt Bella, a loving lady with the heart of gold.
Even though he would try to run away, ignore her, and behave how a "bad egg" should, Bella still gave him unconditional love. She told Ricky on the first night that he came into her life :

"I can't imagine what you've been through.. but you're here, this is home."

Bella gave Ricky a home, a room, books, a warm bed, and even a birthday song just for him. For someone who was taken in and abandoned over and over again, this would be love that he had likely never experienced before. 

"Ricky singing along to Bella's birthday song for him."

Slowly but surely, we see the walls Ricky had put up slowly crumbling down and he's actually just like any other child who wants to be loved. This represents how no child is actually a "bad egg", but rather, children are also human beings with their own valid life experiences. 

As adults and psychologists, we should do all we can to support them as they grow up, proper parenting, love and affection can build a strong foundation for a child, and raising them up to be secure and loving children is worth the effort. 

Week 9 - Grace is Gone

Grace is Gone

Plot 

This film follows Stanley Phillips as he tries to break the news to his daughters about their mother's passing and portrays the grief that comes along with mourning a loved one.

Stanley Phillips

Stanley is an army veteran who loved serving the country, now he is the manager of Home Store, who supports his two daughters by himself as his wife is serving in Iraq. One day, there was a knock on the door and we see two army men. Stanley knows all too well what this means.

After receiving the news, he was in shock and still has not come to terms with the sudden news yet. If feels like the shot of the living room below seems metaphoric for Stanley being alone after his wife's death on the battlefield, and portrays the vastness and emptiness that Stanley is feeling.

The empty living room.

Coping with Death of a Loved One

Stanley then proceeds to wander around the house, peeking into their room, then he enters his daughter's room and lies down on the floor. Maybe because that he and Grace had had many memories with their daughters in their room, as he mentioned in the support group that they tucked their daughters in bed before she left to serve in the army. 

Then there is a video montage of different parts of the house, and this shows that he's going through the entire house doing the same thing, remembering the moments that they had together. We also see many things in the house, and some of the items might belong to Grace, and this shows that bits and pieces of her are still here with us, scattered around the house.

The four chairs in the dining room.

The phone with her voice in the answering machine.

The place where they had their family time.

The bed they slept in.

Next, his daughters come home and brings in food left by the door by someone whom may have heard the news. He told them to not eat it, and took it away from them. He proceeds to bring them out for dinner at 4pm.

After hearing the news, he has began to take more spontaneous actions with his daughters. He asked if they wanted to go somewhere and Dawn wanted to go to Enchanted Gardens, and Heidi was thinking about school and homework. Stanley told them to not worry about homework and that they only have one life to live. He ditches his work as well, maybe this is when he realizes that life is more than just school and work.

After riling the girls up about going on the spontaneous trip, they were confused at first but was happy and excited, we can see and hear all of them laughing and giggling. 

We can see Heidi laughing in the picture below, but Stanley's smile was gone. 

This portrays that the death of his wife is still on his mind and he isn't sure how he is going to break the news to his beloved daughters, right now, he's just making decisions on the go and seeing what will happen. In a way, "Is there anywhere you would like to go" could also portray that he's trying to escape from the truth, the reality that he will no longer see his wife and neither will his daughters.

Maybe he was trying to teach Heidi how to be more spontaneous, because there is more to life, and we just have to grab the opportunities and create our own moments. Heidi says there's nothing that she wants to do, and so Stanley drives out into the field and starts doing doughnuts. 

He also drops by his mother's house as they were on the way to Enchanted Gardens, maybe he was looking for someone to console him, and who do most of us think of first if we ever need comfort, ever since we were young? Our mothers. 

She wasn't home, but Stanley's brother was, and he took his daughters out for lunch. Stanley was finally alone again after spending the entire time driving with his daughters, and he broke down as he slept on his old bed. Maybe this could be interpreted as a portrayal of the defense mechanism of regression, or it may not be because it wasn't shown clearly. 

When his brother finds out about the news, he confronts Stanley, and Stanley goes into an outrage, telling him it's none of his business and to stay out of it. 

He then proceeds to head to Enchanted Gardens, but his brother asks hims to stay and wait for their mother so they can be there for him, which is very important as people who are grieving need as much support as they can get, but this only happens when they're ready to accept it. 

He also calls his house phone occasionally to "update" his wife about how they are doing, and at one point, ask her for advice because he doesn't know what to do, even though he knows that he won't get an answer from the answering machine. 

He also apologizes to Grace through the answering machine, because they got into a fight before she left, and he was angry because he was ashamed that he wasn't the one going.

When they reach Enchanted Gardens, they went on rides, visited the museum and had a blast with each other. He gave them an enjoyable trip before he broke the news to them, maybe he thought that this would help them take in the grief a little better. When they were heading home, Stanley turns into the beach, sits his daughters down and informs them about their mother.

I'm not sure if there is even a right way, but there sure is no easy way. I can feel it from the army men as they broke the news to Stanley, and I can feel it when Stanley broke the news to his daughters.

Grieving families do eventually accept the fact that one of them has passed, and they move on for each other. It doesn't mean that they forget their loved ones that are gone, but rather live on with the memories that they have with them. 

This film also reminds us all to live life purposefully, to create more amazing and loving moments with the ones around us, be it strangers, close friends, or family members, because one day, we too, will pass.