Tag: Movie history

Fear, Folklore, and the Human Mind: Exploring ‘Monsters on the Couch’ by Brian Sharpless

‘Monsters on the Couch’ by Brian A. Sharpless. Photo: Barnes & Noble

Book Spotlight: Monsters on the Couch by Brian A. Sharpless

Exploring the Real Psychological Disorders Behind Famous Horror Movies

From psychologist, researcher, and horror film enthusiast Brian A. Sharpless comes Monsters on the Couch: The Real Psychological Disorders Behind Your Favorite Horror Movies, an exploration of the real-life psychological disorders that inspired some of cinema’s most iconic horror movies. (Barnes & Noble, 2025)

Sharpless compares dramatic clinical syndromes, every bit as fascinating as those on the silver screen, with the science and folklore behind our favorite monsters.

Horror movies, he argues, can reveal far more about human psychology than we realize. When explored honestly, our fears become mirrors reflecting our culture, our anxieties, and our shared humanity.

Famous Monsters and Their Real-Life Counterparts

Horror fans may be obsessed with vampires, werewolves, zombies, and the eerie “replacements” from Invasion of the Body Snatchers, but few know the real conditions behind these creatures, such as Renfield’s syndrome, clinical lycanthropy, Cotard’s syndrome, and misidentification delusions.

What’s Inside the Book

Part I: Movie Monsters from the Early Days of Cinema

  1. Clinical Lycanthropy
  2. You Suck?
  3. I Am The Walking Dead

Part II: Modern-Day Movie Monsters

  1. One, Two, The Dab Tsog’s Coming For You
  2. This Is Not My Beautiful House, This Is Not My Beautiful Wife
  3. Demons, Aliens, and Shadow People

Part III: Monstrous Behaviors

  1. Are You Gonna Eat That?
  2. Shuddersome Sex in the Movies

Highlights

Part I: Chapter 3
Sharpless explains that immortality might not be all it’s cracked up to be. Vampires and zombies both feed after death, yet zombies’ mindless existence makes their fate far gloomier. As he writes,

“Some psychologists and philosophers have argued that this fundamental fear of death prompted people to defensively create gods and an immortal afterlife.”

Part II: Chapter 4
Sharpless shares his personal experience with sleep paralysis and connects it to the mysterious Hmong Deaths that likely inspired Nightmare on Elm Street. These incidents involved young men in California who died in their sleep, hauntingly blurring the line between science and superstition.

Review

In Monsters on the Couch, clinical psychologist Brian Sharpless bridges the gap between horror cinema and psychological science with wit and expertise. His goal is to raise awareness of serious but often overlooked psychological conditions that cause real suffering.

Each chapter dissects iconic horror films such as Nightmare on Elm Street and Invasion of the Body Snatchers through the lens of genuine mental disorders, uncovering the truths, exaggerations, and myths that shape how we perceive mental illness. He also explains symptoms and common treatments with both compassion and precision.

Sharpless writes with the enthusiasm of a horror fan and the insight of a clinician, grounding classic horror tropes like sleep paralysis and vampirism in psychological reality. The tone remains conversational and often humorous, making even the darkest topics approachable.

Ultimately, Monsters on the Couch reminds us that the true horror isn’t the monster on the screen, it’s society’s ongoing misunderstanding of mental health. This is essential reading for horror lovers, psychology students, and anyone curious about how fear and empathy intertwine.

“The most consistent theme across films would likely be a fear of death…I suspect that a lot of people get uncomfortable even dipping their toe in the dark, icy cold waters of death, let alone diving in headfirst.”

Rating: 4 out of 5.

About the Author

Brian A. Sharpless is a licensed psychologist, researcher, and author whose work focuses on unusual psychological disorders, psychodynamic psychotherapy, and the history and philosophy of clinical psychology. He holds a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and an M.A. in Philosophy from Pennsylvania State University, and completed post-doctoral fellowships at the University of Pennsylvania.

*Thank you to Fauzia Burke/FSB Associates for the gift copy for review consideration. I haven’t been compensated for this review and all views and opinions expressed are my own.

New book release: ‘Nolanverse: Exploring the Greatest Illusion in Movie History’ by Robert E. Eliot

‘Nolanverse: Exploring the Greatest Illusion in Movie History: An Unauthorized New Analysis of The Dark Knight Rises’ by Robert E. Eliot. Photo: Robert E. Eliot, used with permission.

In the world of superheroes, Batman is arguably one of the most famous one in the DC Universe. There have been numerous movies made to bring him to the big screen, including The Dark Knight trilogy. This set of Christopher Nolan Batman movies consists of Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, and The Dark Knight Rises. While The Dark Knight Rises was an exciting movie, the ending left us with more questions than answers. If you are a fan of the trilogy, today’s new book release might interest you: “Nolanverse: Exploring the Greatest Illusion in Movie History: An Unauthorized New Analysis of The Dark Knight Rises.” Robert E. Eliot delves deep into the movie and examines it from every angle in an effort to fully understand the meaning of that enigmatic ending. It is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other book retailers.

Robert E. Eliot is also the author of “Mi Negro Amigo: An Unauthorized New Analysis of Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight.” His new book “Nolanverse: Exploring the Greatest Illusion in Movie History: An Unauthorized New Analysis of The Dark Knight Rises” analyses the ending of that final Batman movie. He lives and works in the great state of Washington and looks forward to writing additional nonfiction books in the future. (Robert E. Eliot, 2023)

“Nolanverse: Exploring the Greatest Illusion in Movie History: An Unauthorized New Analysis of The Dark Knight Rises.” – The Dark Knight Rises holds a distinguished place in twenty-first-century cinema as the monumental conclusion to Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy. And as millions of moviegoers around the world know, one of the most glaring aspects of the film is the way that it concludes—with the type of sensational ending that seems engineered for generating plenty of discussion beyond the movie theater.

For too long, fans have had to live with a highly unsatisfactory explanation of that ending—an explanation that is content to simply twist facts to suit theories. But what if we were to let good old-fashioned common sense have a say about the fate of Gotham’s legendary hero the Batman at the height of the film’s chilling climax?

What if the grand finale to one of the most important motion picture trilogies of all time is seriously different from what audiences have long supposed? What if there is still so much more to discover?

“A breath of fresh air for fans of the Dark Knight trilogy who have long pondered the mysteries surrounding the fate of Batman in the film’s climax. … A truly fascinating read. … If you’re a fan of Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy or simply enjoy thought-provoking film analysis, then definitely get yourself a copy of Nolanverse today.” – K.C. Finn, Readers’ Favorite

“Eliot’s work forays beyond a standard analysis and really places the grand finale of the Dark Knight trilogy under a microscope, expertly examining every angle while bringing in numerous Christopher Nolan ventures, like Memento and Inception, to probe the mind of the iconic filmmaker. … With almost surgical precision, Eliot guides readers through … a thought-provoking debate on whether … Nolan has pulled off perhaps the greatest illusion in cinematic history. While Eliot starts with the ending, his critique is incredibly comprehensive.” – US Review of Books

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