There’s nothing quite as cinematically rich as therapy for a screenwriter. While most scenes don’t allow characters to express themselves directly, playing off of a therapist can allow a character to seem like they’re talking to themselves. Still, there are not very many great therapists in movies. The handful of well-known instances of therapy in movies rarely depict the realities of reaching out for help in realistic, or even helpful ways. Many people still think of therapy as some neurotic narcissist dictating his relationship with his parents to a bespectacled Freud-lover in a leather chair. These representations in cinema affect people seeking out therapy and can sometimes even prevent them from getting help. That’s why it’s time to count down 11 of the most popular therapists in film, from the worst of the lot to the strongest professor of good mental health. And how does that make you feel?
11. The Analyst, The Matrix Resurrections
Although measuring the success of a therapist is an incredibly subjective exercise, starting off our list with the outright evil doctor at the bottom is a no-brainer. Neil Patrick Harris pulls off a particularly soft type of evil as The Analyst lulls Neo into the docility of Thomas Anderson’s life. He personifies every paranoid fear that one might associate with therapy in a stellar bit of acting that switches between maniacally mechanic and motherly on a dime. While his analysis may mostly be correct, the little good here is poisoned by the intentions behind it.
The Matrix Resurrections showcases the power struggle that comes with someone tinkering in your mind. This obviously deceitful villain shouldn’t be stuck with the representation for his occupation in any viewer’s eyes. For his crimes against humanity’s savior, breach of personal trust, and use of psychoanalysis for evil, the court sentences The Analyst to the lowest ranking on this list.
10. Dr. Leo Marvin, What About Bob?
Comedy plays with therapy like a toddler waving a plastic bag; the comedy either suffocates itself or tears real world ideas of how therapy works to shreds. What About Bob? takes the latter route as it walks in the shoes of the therapist for a change. From the other side of the desk we glare at Bob Wiley (Bill Murray) as he tiptoes through a life that seems out to get him. While this delightful movie’s satiric wit strikes deep into our treatment of mental health issues, the therapist in question, Dr. Leo Marvin (Richard Dreyfuss) is a straw man representation of a psychiatrist. The villain never recognizes where Bob can thrive and instead his need for vacation and preservation of doctor-patient policy bulldozes his own mental state into a vengeful murderous mush. Like The Analyst, Leo ignores Bob’s well-being for his own snobbish pride and public appearance. At least unlike the computerized oppressor, it takes Leo a long time before deciding that the only cure is “Death Therapy.”
9. Dr. Lilith Ritter, Nightmare Alley
Cinema disproportionately represents instances in which a therapist has an abnormally close relationship with their patient, whether it be friendly or romantic. In the case of Cate Blanchett’s Dr. Ritter, the twist reveals that her client relationship was neither. Similar to The Analyst, Dr. Ritter wishes simply to manipulate the conning magician Stanton Carlisle (Bradley Cooper) for her own ends. While she offers some hacky albeit accurate interpretations of Stan’s emotional conundrums that end up warning signals addressing his actions at the end of the film, she again falls into the trope of evil psychiatrist. Her tools of the trade, namely relatability and vulnerability, turn to ruthlessness and villainy at the drop of a hat. The fashionable liar may seem to be understanding your plight when in fact the wolf wears sheep’s clothing. Her only reason for ranking above Leo Marvin springs from her clear passion for the occupation; as long as you’re okay with her possibly selling your secrets to a magician, Ritter makes a fine analyst.
8. Jules Hilbert, Stranger Than Fiction
Breathe a sigh of relief; while the bottom three candidates on this list are explicitly villains, from here our therapists’ worst vice is mediocrity. None suffer this more brutally than the therapist of Stranger Than Fiction. While audience members may wrongfully recall Dustin Hoffman’s character to be a psychiatrist, it is with good cause. When Harold Crick (Will Ferrell) visits a real psychiatrist (Linda Hunt) to tell her that he hears a voice in his head narrating his life as if dictating a novel, she urges him to consult a literature savant after hearing the totally convincing argument “It’s not schizophrenia, it’s just a voice in my head,” from Harold.
Thus, for the rest of the story, the unlicensed Jules Hilbert acts as Harold’s counsel to middling success. “I’m not an expert in crazy,” Jules says, “I’m an expert in literature theory.” While he has very little in the way of psychiatric help, his questioning and advice works well and his insistence to “start with ridiculous and work backwards” is actually quite charming. As a representation of good therapy, between the earlier blunt psychiatrist and Jules, the film flattens to a middle ground.
7. Dr. Oatman, Grosse Pointe Blank
Brief fireworks of comedic genius explode from the script of Grosse Pointe Blank, creating a comedic spectacle One of these sparks deals with therapy. When a professional assassin like Martin Blank (John Cusack) needs psychological help, how is he supposed to get it without repercussions for his murderous habits? Martin’s solution involves light references to the murder of Dr. Oatman (Alan Arkin) and his family in order to squeeze sessions out of the psychiatrist.
Oatman does the best with what he’s given; his leadership to self-discovery helps set up Martin for the breakthrough that will change his life. In the few sessions depicted in the film, he seems professional though sweaty, understanding though protesting. He remains an impressively good example of a therapist, considering that he truly just wants Martin to leave as soon as possible without guns coming out.
6. Dr. McCabe, Vanilla Sky
To talk about Vanilla Sky without digging into any of the film’s major reveals is like manufacturing pre-broken pencils: pointless. Perhaps something in human nature provokes us to think of psychiatrists as cold computers, designed artificially to understand us. We certainly can’t understand ourselves; how could some geyser in a bookstore of an office think he knows who we are?
Enter Dr. McCabe (Kurt Russell) as he counsels David Aames (Tom Cruise) through a murder investigation. Vanilla Sky’s Rubix Cube of a plot seems to spin around their sessions together in which McCabe unmasks layers of trauma that David has wrapped around himself. He’s a great therapist on a personal level, so perfectly suited to encouraging David that it’s almost as if he’s been programmed. What a shocker! Dr. McCabe represents an impossible ideal of strength, who would adopt his patient before thinking of giving up on him. But his knowledge seems rudimentary and basic; he’s a clipart representation of a therapist. As the product of David’s own psyche, he will never really be useful to any other client.
5. Dr. Cawley, Shutter Island
In the same category of movies featuring unrealistically lenient psychiatrists, we find Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island. Although he is the lead psychiatrist of the mental health facility on the titular island, Dr. Cawley (played with precision by Ben Kingsley) spends a fair amount of time with one specific patient. The number of antics that Cawley allows is nothing compare to the amount of the movie that concerns itself with whether Cawley is evil or not. At one point, duly appointed federal marshal Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio) even guesses that Cawley’s attempts to slow him down are actually techniques of driving him insane. Cawley intentionally breaks the trust of his patient as a test, and from one viewpoint his experiment has gone incredibly wrong.
Yet Dr. Cawley clearly tries his best with what he has. When confronting his patient about their behavior, he keeps a level kindly voice. His attempts to sooth the paranoia that’s built up seem indicative of genuine care. The only drawback of his treatment that he really controls is giving up his control. In desperation, he allows an arsonist to roam free and indulge delusions.
4. Katherine McKay, 50/50
The always perky Anna Kendrick’s star persona has always been one of understanding and cheeriness. 50/50 utilizes this natural aura by casting her perfectly to play a counselor to a cancer patient. When Adam Lerner (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) gets his diagnosis, he is assigned Kendrick’s Katherine McKay, a young, novice PhD candidate. As they become closer, the two start to become personally involved as she helps him reconstruct his familial ties.
Although the manic pixie dream girl label suits this character decently, Kendrick’s wit and the script’s setup justifies her position well enough. While this interaction shouldn’t give anyone ideas about falling in love with their therapist, Katherine and Adam’s discussions are believable enough to justify a high place here.
3. Dr. Ben Sobel, Analyze This & Analyze That
Laughter can truly be the best medicine, particularly if Billy Crystal plays your psychiatrist. In the ATCU (Analyze This Cinematic Universe), Crystal plays Dr. Ben Sobel, who is recruited by mafia boss Paul Vitti (Robert De Niro) as his therapist. Similar to Dr. Oatman, Sobel is forced to provide a safe space to Paul under a vague threat of death as he coaches the Godfather through anxiety at work.
While Sobel plays into plenty of stereotypes, Crystal’s unique “Oh c’mon!” type humor lends a hand in humorizing what could be a straight man to De Niro’s silliness. The representation of therapy here is quite strong as Sobel explains to Paul how it's supposed to help you improve over time. The major issue comes from the sequel in which Sobel starts to go into his own depressive spiral in front of his patient that cancels out somegoodwill from his previous performance.
2. Dr. Malcolm Crowe, The Sixth Sense
The Sixth Sense centers around a boy named Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment) and his therapist as the former copes with his parents’ divorce and an odd ability while the latter navigates his failing marriage. It’s impressive that Malcom Crowe (Bruce Willis) climbs so high on this list given his supernaturally attuned patient, but his work with Cole shines as a stellar example of child counseling.
Truly the only real fault against Malcolm falls on the plot’s needs. Malcolm clearly needs so badly for his sessions to go well with Cole to work through his own trauma. This weight effects Cole, especially during the low middle point of the film. Additionally, Malcolm’s many assumptions about Cole may seem like sound psychiatrist work, but it’s a Molly’s Game-like instance of giving a patient “the answers” rather than letting him discover them himself.
Dr. Sean Maguire, Good Will Hunting
As cliché as it may be to say that Robin Williams’ performance as Dr. Sean Maguire in Good Will Hunting remains the best therapist portrayal in cinema, much of our truth is made up of theories proven enough to be clichés. Sessions between Sean and the young, brilliant Will Hunting (Matt Damon) are not only powerful; they build into a strong representation of progress.
Like the two entries below this one, Sean goes through his own character arc along with his patient. Yet unlike the majority of this list, Sean never crosses the line to the point of adding his problems to his patient’s. He’s understanding, reasonable, and never harmful. While it may seem like his conversations with Will turn into a fast solution, the film never makes it seem like Will’s issues have been magically solved, but rather that he has been provided to tools to deal with them, a central tenant of therapy.
