What About Bob? What About Bob? is a movie directed by Frank Oz and staring Bill Murray and Richard Dreyfuss as Bob Wiley and Dr Leo Marvin, respectfully. It follows as the client, Bob, pursues a relationship outside of therapy with Leo, his counselor. The counselor-client relationship is evident throughout the movie, although it is portrayed as very dysfunctional and unprofessional on the counselor’s side. The counselor role is suppose to be one of support and encouragement towards a resolution of the client’s issues but how this is mostly shown in the movie is by showing how the counselor is falling uphold this role. The theoretical approach is hard to pin down but some signs point towards a psychoanalytical approach. What About Bob? opens with a counseling session between Bob and Leo. Bob presents as a client with multiple neuroses, resembling Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. For example, he has a phobia of germs and is compelled to pretend to have Tourette’s and heart attacks as he believes that by faking them, he can avoid developing these conditions. He also has dependence issues. At the end of the session, Leo gives him his latest, top selling book and tells him he is taking a month long vacation. Bob cannot accept this and proceeds to follow Leo and, ultimately, join him on …show more content…
Leo does not maintain his professional demeanor or distance. His ego and temper always escalate the situation and makes it worse. Ironically, he claims not ever feel anger or frustration. For example, when Bob initially finds him on his vacation, Leo reacts by suggesting out of frustration that Bob take a vacation from his problems, which Bob interprets as Leo suggesting he takes an actual vacation. What Bob needed were firm boundaries and a clear understanding that Leo would not be interacting with him further outside of a counseling