In her “Born This Way” music video, Lady Gaga models a kind of refusal to let shame and self-doubt debilitate her, triumphing over those feelings through her enormous artistic gifts.

Though there are many themes presented in Pleasantville (1998), those that will be explored here are the shadow side of our emotions, the dangers of not dealing with them consciously and the rewards of living in connection with all parts of our ourselves. The film shows that the cost of living in “black and white” is a life that is flat, bland and two-dimensional. And, for all the mess that living with our full range of emotions can bring, doing so enables us to live a “colorful” life with all of its richness and depth.

In ‘Thor’ the movie, father Odin teaches his son a lesson in humility; at the same time, son Thor must learn to honor and respect Odin for his wisdom and greater experience.

The film “Pandora and the Flying Dutchman” (1951) gives us the opportunity to question some of our most cherished notions about romantic love.

The film Pandora and the Flying Dutchman (1951) illustrates the archetype of the Ghostly Lover. An archetype is a symbol or pattern that consistently recurs and is recognizable as a part of human experience, often seen in myths or fairy tales. Viewing Pandora as if it were a fairy tale helps shed light on the dynamics of the Ghostly Lover who keeps us in the realm of dreams, not of earthly life. This lover can be someone for whom we “carry a torch,” the one that got away, or a fantasy ideal of a soul-mate. He or she often resides in the land of “what if” or “what could have been,” creating what Linda Schierse Leonard calls an “impossible possibility.” This dynamic can set up an infernal longing for something that does not exist or can never be.

In her recent New York Times interview to promote the upcoming Oprah Network documentary “Finding Sarah: From Royalty to the Real World,” Sarah Ferguson appears to be as lost and unable to accept being part of the “real world” as ever.

“Soul: the essential part or fundamental nature of anything.” ~ World English Dictionary

Paul Giamatti plays the main character in Cold Souls (2009) as a fictionalized version of himself. Starring in a stage play of Uncle Vanya and having difficulty with his role, he is filled with anxiety. Feeling that his soul is to blame, he decides to undergo a “soul extraction and storage,” a new technology performed by Dr. Flintstein (David Strathairn).

The doctor explains, “A twisted soul is like a tumor, better to get rid of it …When you get rid of your soul, everything makes more sense, becomes purposeful, functional.” No troublesome emotions to get in the way!