Cinema, Suffering and Psychoanalysis is unique and vital addition to the canon of film analysis, bringing together psychoanalysis and psychology in order to explore, in exciting new ways, the manner with which cinema can represent our deepest struggles and darkest experiences. An authoritative, and highly readable, exploration of cinema and suffering.

Scott Wilson, Senior Lecturer of Critical Studies, Massey University, New Zealand

This is a fascinating and expertly written account of the relationship between clinical psychology, psychoanalysis and cinema. Dr Stephenson's thoroughly engaging writing style, which is both accessible and informed by detailed and thorough research, and her use of appropriate films as case studies, results in a compelling argument for approaching cinema in a novel way.

Jamie Medhurst, Professor of Media and Communication, Aberystwyth University, UK

Focusing on psychological suffering through the lens of film, Laura Stephenson innovatively combines the diagnostic capacity of psychiatry with the subjective insights of psychoanalysis to show that suffering is not abnormal. It affects, and unifies, us all. With equal parts acuity and compassion – for the film protagonists as well as for ourselves, their inevitable companions – Stephenson shows why we are fascinated with psychological disorder in film, and what it may tell us about our own condition. In a world of compounding mental health concerns, this is a book of and for our times.

Misha Kavka, Professor of Cross-Media Culture, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands