Melvin Udall
Melvin Udall, played by Jack Nicholson, is the leading male character in one of my favorite movies, the 1997 dramatic, romantic comedy As Good As It Gets. He's a reclusive, successful romance author diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), who manifests symptoms ranging from severe at the beginning of the movie to milder (almost remissive) towards the end. Some of his compulsions include avoiding stepping on cracks in the sidewalks and streets, avoiding touch, and checking. The distress caused by his behaviors increases throughout the movie (a marked distress is a qualifier for the disorder in the DSM-V). The remedy for his OCD in the movie, it seems, is love (it's Hollywood). Helen Hunt plays Carol Connelly, the leading lady and
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object of Melvin's affection, whose level of understanding and tolerance for his behavior is astounding. There is an element of self-awareness with Udall, despite his OCD.
For example, his reply to his psychiatrist after being confronted about showing up without an appointment is, "Dr. Green, how can you diagnose someone with an obsessive compulsive disorder and then act like I have some choice about barging in here?" When Carol personally affronts him, asking if he has any control over what she perceives to be one of his more undesirable characteristics, he responds with, "Yes I do, as a matter of fact. And to prove it..." Flashes of Melvin's sensitivity and self-realization are speckled throughout the movie, gradually increasing with each scene as his feelings for Carol get stronger. He even develops a remarkable sense of empathy (I have a hard time believing it was entirely selfish of him) by arranging a house call for Carol's ill son with his publisher's husband, a physician. Despite Melvin's generosity, it's evident that his self-esteem has suffered because he says to his neighbor's dog ("Verdell," the dog he agreed to care for while its owner recuperates from a mugging) as it pauses to avoid stepping on a crack in the sidewalk, as he does, "Don't you be like me! You stay just the way you are, 'cause you're a perfect man and I'm gonna take you home!" Projection of hope for himself, it
seems. In the beginning Udall is brash, showing little (if any) empathy or sensitivity, and his interactions with total strangers are often crass and curt. A favorite (of many) interaction(s) is in the restaurant when Udall says to Carol, "Judging from your eyes, I'd say you were fifty," and she responds with, "Judging from your eyes, I'd say you were kind, so so much for eyes." As the film progresses, so does Melvin's behavior. He seems to soften and become more human; it seems as though what he needed was the relatedness, care, and social connection with others. It's through his relationships that he begins to change, and by the end of the movie he realizes at one point as he pauses in front of his apartment door that he forgot to lock the door. (I get goosebumps every time I watch that scene.) The final scene shows Melvin walking arm-in-arm with Carol down a sidewalk, with him seeming to pay no mind at all to the cracks in the sidewalk. I was tempted to mention the kiss scene as well, but I don't think I'd be able to concentrate enough to finish this paper. OCD is similar to generalized anxiety disorder (GAD); the main similarity is an anxious worry, but in OCD, the worry manifests itself in uncontrollable, repetitive acts (compulsions). Borkovec and Roemer (1995) did two studies concentrating on GAD in an attempt to better understand reasons for such anxiety-driven worry. In the first study, the subjects (college students, both with and without GAD) reported that motivation, preparation for the worst, and avoidance/prevention of negative outcomes were the most typical reasons why they worry. Those with GAD added that their worry tends to serve as a distraction from other more sensitive issues. General problem solving and superstition were also included as reasons for worry. Matthews (1990, in Borkovec & Roemer, 1995) found that "the avoidant nature of worry results in interference with elaboration of the associative network" (p. 25), and Borkovec (1994, in Borkovec & Roemer, 1995) found that "the worry process suppresses somatic activation, resulting in some initial relief but also in interference with emotional processing and the maintenance of anxious meaning" (p. 25). Davey, Hampton, Farrel and Davidson (1992, in Borkovec & Roemer, 1995) countered that worry can be just as adaptive as maladaptive, providing a means of positive coping strategies. One of the measures used in the in Borkovec and Roemer study was the Reasons to Worry Questionnaire. Some of the responses to the Reasons to Worry Questionnaire include both adaptive and maladaptive reasons based on motivation, preparation, avoidance, distraction (specifically from difficult or uncomfortable topics), and superstition (Borkovec & Roemer, 1995). In the movie, Melvin displayed superstitious worrying by not stepping on cracks in sidewalks–a classic anxiety-based avoidance action–along with feeling the need to touch certain objects but not others (e.g., parking meters). One of the responses to the questionnaire, "Although it may not actually be true, it feels like if I worry about something, the worrying makes it less likely that something bad will happen" (Borkovec & Roemer, 1995, p. 26), resonated with me particularly because as much as I also believe it's not true, I found myself worrying in a similar fashion just this past week. I'm not a fan of flying (at all), but I had to take two planes in one day to reach a destination. I'm the least superstitious person I know, yet I had to ask myself, "Now what good will worrying about this do? What, do you think if you worry about it, it'll make it less likely to happen?" Then I had a full-on conversation with myself (not out loud, of course; I was in public) about travel, life, God, and next thing I knew we were in the air. I find it's comforting on some level to know I'm not alone in my...well, what one may call "eccentricity," another may call "loveliness;" either way, it's nice to be reminded that I'm not the only one. I generally feel this throughout As Good As It Gets. To be consumed with worry to my own chagrin and despite my personal faith, regardless of the reasons, is no fun. I believe that regardless of reasons (either adaptive or maladaptive), it's just best to not worry at all, ever. When I reach that ideal, I'll make my own Hollywood movie.
object of Melvin's affection, whose level of understanding and tolerance for his behavior is astounding. There is an element of self-awareness with Udall, despite his OCD.
For example, his reply to his psychiatrist after being confronted about showing up without an appointment is, "Dr. Green, how can you diagnose someone with an obsessive compulsive disorder and then act like I have some choice about barging in here?" When Carol personally affronts him, asking if he has any control over what she perceives to be one of his more undesirable characteristics, he responds with, "Yes I do, as a matter of fact. And to prove it..." Flashes of Melvin's sensitivity and self-realization are speckled throughout the movie, gradually increasing with each scene as his feelings for Carol get stronger. He even develops a remarkable sense of empathy (I have a hard time believing it was entirely selfish of him) by arranging a house call for Carol's ill son with his publisher's husband, a physician. Despite Melvin's generosity, it's evident that his self-esteem has suffered because he says to his neighbor's dog ("Verdell," the dog he agreed to care for while its owner recuperates from a mugging) as it pauses to avoid stepping on a crack in the sidewalk, as he does, "Don't you be like me! You stay just the way you are, 'cause you're a perfect man and I'm gonna take you home!" Projection of hope for himself, it
seems. In the beginning Udall is brash, showing little (if any) empathy or sensitivity, and his interactions with total strangers are often crass and curt. A favorite (of many) interaction(s) is in the restaurant when Udall says to Carol, "Judging from your eyes, I'd say you were fifty," and she responds with, "Judging from your eyes, I'd say you were kind, so so much for eyes." As the film progresses, so does Melvin's behavior. He seems to soften and become more human; it seems as though what he needed was the relatedness, care, and social connection with others. It's through his relationships that he begins to change, and by the end of the movie he realizes at one point as he pauses in front of his apartment door that he forgot to lock the door. (I get goosebumps every time I watch that scene.) The final scene shows Melvin walking arm-in-arm with Carol down a sidewalk, with him seeming to pay no mind at all to the cracks in the sidewalk. I was tempted to mention the kiss scene as well, but I don't think I'd be able to concentrate enough to finish this paper. OCD is similar to generalized anxiety disorder (GAD); the main similarity is an anxious worry, but in OCD, the worry manifests itself in uncontrollable, repetitive acts (compulsions). Borkovec and Roemer (1995) did two studies concentrating on GAD in an attempt to better understand reasons for such anxiety-driven worry. In the first study, the subjects (college students, both with and without GAD) reported that motivation, preparation for the worst, and avoidance/prevention of negative outcomes were the most typical reasons why they worry. Those with GAD added that their worry tends to serve as a distraction from other more sensitive issues. General problem solving and superstition were also included as reasons for worry. Matthews (1990, in Borkovec & Roemer, 1995) found that "the avoidant nature of worry results in interference with elaboration of the associative network" (p. 25), and Borkovec (1994, in Borkovec & Roemer, 1995) found that "the worry process suppresses somatic activation, resulting in some initial relief but also in interference with emotional processing and the maintenance of anxious meaning" (p. 25). Davey, Hampton, Farrel and Davidson (1992, in Borkovec & Roemer, 1995) countered that worry can be just as adaptive as maladaptive, providing a means of positive coping strategies. One of the measures used in the in Borkovec and Roemer study was the Reasons to Worry Questionnaire. Some of the responses to the Reasons to Worry Questionnaire include both adaptive and maladaptive reasons based on motivation, preparation, avoidance, distraction (specifically from difficult or uncomfortable topics), and superstition (Borkovec & Roemer, 1995). In the movie, Melvin displayed superstitious worrying by not stepping on cracks in sidewalks–a classic anxiety-based avoidance action–along with feeling the need to touch certain objects but not others (e.g., parking meters). One of the responses to the questionnaire, "Although it may not actually be true, it feels like if I worry about something, the worrying makes it less likely that something bad will happen" (Borkovec & Roemer, 1995, p. 26), resonated with me particularly because as much as I also believe it's not true, I found myself worrying in a similar fashion just this past week. I'm not a fan of flying (at all), but I had to take two planes in one day to reach a destination. I'm the least superstitious person I know, yet I had to ask myself, "Now what good will worrying about this do? What, do you think if you worry about it, it'll make it less likely to happen?" Then I had a full-on conversation with myself (not out loud, of course; I was in public) about travel, life, God, and next thing I knew we were in the air. I find it's comforting on some level to know I'm not alone in my...well, what one may call "eccentricity," another may call "loveliness;" either way, it's nice to be reminded that I'm not the only one. I generally feel this throughout As Good As It Gets. To be consumed with worry to my own chagrin and despite my personal faith, regardless of the reasons, is no fun. I believe that regardless of reasons (either adaptive or maladaptive), it's just best to not worry at all, ever. When I reach that ideal, I'll make my own Hollywood movie.