A Monster Calls is a young person fantasy movie that has received widespread acclaim and several accolades. This film is famous and will be converted into a film; it is a brief movie in which a monster portrays the character of a friend in order to speed up the recovery process. The topic of strength and independence in young adult fiction has gained traction and is being researched by a number of academics. This work is for the purpose of reviewing the film from a psychological point of view.
Throughout the plot, Conor is warned by the beast that he should tell the truth when the creature finishes its three tales. Conor is adamant that there is no truth to be revealed, but after much persuasion, he may face the humiliating fact that has left him alone and terrified (Movieclips Trailers, 2016). Conor’s reality turns out to be less heinous than he thinks. “Your mind will believe comforting lies while knowing the painful truths that make those lies necessary. Your mind will punish you for believing both” (Movieclips Trailers, 2016). While Conor is afraid of others finding out how he truly feels, he must seem to believe that his mother’s therapies would rescue her. Conor’s yearning for her to get better while yet wishing for her to die, so he does not have to wait is an understandable human feeling, according to the monster (Movieclips Trailers, 2016). Conor’s willingness to accept the truth about his mother’s illness and sentiments relieves him of the stress of maintaining his secret, allowing him to be truthful with himself as well as with his mother in her closing act.
Monster symbolism emotionally depicts the blurring of the line between our thoughts about self and the world, as well as the unsettling sensation of pre-trauma preconceptions being shattered. Monsters, in this theory, are part of a more considerable, evidence-based information desire to reduce trauma-related psychological discomfort by representing experience and bringing it into awareness for processing and significance (Hamilton, 2020). In this sense, monsters may play a multifaceted role in humans’ attempts to cope with traumatic occurrences.
When difficult psychological symptoms linked with a traumatic incident persist beyond the immediate aftermath of the stressful incident, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is frequently diagnosed. Traumatic events usually require exposure to a significant threat of damage to oneself or someone close to oneself (Hamilton, 2020). War, tragedies, sexual and physical abuse, terrible accidents, catastrophic disease, and some personal tragedies are only a few examples (Trauma lecture, Ayşegül Kalem). Childhood trauma can occur as a result of extended exposure to adversity, abandonment, or abuse, and baby bonding issues can be stressful.
When trauma survivors are enduring psychological symptoms, they may have dreams or visions of creatures. Nevertheless, there has been minimal discussion of the importance and meaning of this imagery, as well as the more significant link between monster vision and PTSD. Survivors might use monsters as a symbol to explain their encounters (Trauma lecture, Ayşegül Kalem). Night terrors, for example, are imaged depictions of fear states that may be a direct reflection of the trauma (Hamilton, 2020). An abuse victim, for instance, may notice their abuser seated close to them. In other circumstances, the encounter is only a valid expression, such as seeing a grotesque or shadowy figure or hearing a frightening voice. Creature imagery is familiar in art therapy, especially when dealing with children who have been through terrible circumstances.
The fundamental issue of the work is cognitive dissonance, which is defined as the situation of having beliefs or emotions that appear to be contradictory or directly conflicting. Conor’s misery originates in part from his psychological and spiritual capability to both expect and know that his mother’s health will deteriorate, prompting him to want for her mortality to occur soon so he may be relieved of the misery of existing in uncertainty. Conor feels terrible for not being faithful to his hope that his mother’s illness would improve as his mood swings between rejection and understanding, enthusiasm and despair. While Conor’s capacity to hang on to these seemingly conflicting ideas causes him embarrassment, the monster reminds him that believing in two things at once is a crucial component of being a person.
I can say that this creature plays an integral role in Conor’s life; it is an attempt to help him understand the situation, accept his mother’s death and accept this reality. The creature begins to invent stories to bring it to this level of cognitive thinking. In my opinion, the central theme of the film is how to deal with the sad universal facts of life, such as the death of a loved one and the ability to move forward. The hatred, exhaustion, isolation of the child, the loneliness of the separated parent, and repressed emotions such as the problems of divorced children, loss, anxiety, and severe illness are all conveyed to readers through this work. I empathized with Conor’s feelings and fears; I got a sense of emotional straightness, felt at peace with my feelings, and was not confused by my ideas. Two monster stories and Conor’s own biography allude to the purifying aspect.
References
Hamilton, J. (2020). Monsters and posttraumatic stress: an experiential-processing model of monster imagery in psychological therapy, film, and television. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 7(1), 1-8.
Movieclips Trailers. (2016). A monster calls official trailer (2016) – felicity jones movie. YouTube.