Melvin Udall: Movie Analysis Of The Movie

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Melvin Udall is a successful novelist living in New York City. In the beginning of the movie he is an irritable, obsessive-compulsive man who alienates himself from those around him. To add to his alienation, he works from home and does not allow anyone in his apartment. His routine consists of going to the same restaurant, being served by the same waitress and eating at the same table every day. His mental disorder is also displayed in several different obsessive-compulsive actions such as turning the locks five times and doing the same for the lights in his home. One day, Melvin’s homosexual neighbor is assaulted and put into the hospital. Due to the misfortune, Melvin is forced to watch the neighbor’s dog while he recovers from the assault. At this point in the movie, Melvin develops an emotional attachment to the dog and his attitude begins to change for the better. Melvin decides to help the waitress from the restaurant by paying for her son’s medical bills. This gesture comes after him having a meltdown when she did not show up to work to serve him. Near the end of the movie, Melvin makes a trip to help the neighbor and invites the waitress to come along. The trip does not go as planned, but the experience helps him to learn to communicate and have better relationships with people. In the end, Melvin falls in love with the waitress and is willing to learn to overcome his obsessive-compulsive lifestyle to be with her.
Melvin is most likely to be diagnosed with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, due to the fact that he meets all of the DSM-5 criteria for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. He displays obsessions, which are defined by recurrent, intrusive, persistent, uncontrollable thoughts, urges or images (Kring, Johnson, Davison & ...

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...digm, cognitive behavioral therapy would be the most effective treatment option for Melvin. During exposure and response prevention, individuals suffering from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder are directly exposed to anxiety provoking behaviors and thoughts. Throughout therapy individuals learn to confront their anxiety and resist urges to perform compulsions caused by obsessions. Also, individuals in treatment learn to substitute negative thoughts with positive ones. Melvin’s treatment should begin with exposure to each of his obsessions and move gradually from low-anxiety to high-anxiety triggers. Melvin’s anxiety from his obsessions should significantly decrease with social support from his newly developed relationships. Lastly, research shows that 75% of people with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder are drastically helped by cognitive behavioral therapy (Nichols, 2010)

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