In Episode 7 of The Carpenter Critique, host Luke Carpenter reviews the new animated film, "The Super Mario Galaxy Movie”, (starring Chris Pratt, Brie Larson and Anya Taylor Joy), by partnering it with the neuroscience study from Columbia University's Department of Psychology, “Human exploration strategically balances approaching and avoiding uncertainty”. by Yaniv Abir, Michael Neil Shadlen, and Daphna Shohamy.

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In Episode 6 of The Carpenter Critique, host Luke Carpenter gives us a review of A24’s new movie, “The Drama”, (starring Zendaya and Robert Pattinson), by comparing it to Daryl Caameron and company’s research psychology study with Pennsylvania State University and University of Toronto, “Empathy is Hard Work: People Choose to Avoid Empathy Because of Its Cognitive Costs”.

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In Episode 5 of The Carpenter Critique, host Luke Carpenter gives us a review of the brand new Blockbuster smash, "Project Hail Mary" by comparing it to Lawrence J. Walker and Jeremy A. Frimer's research psychology study with the University of British Columbia, "Moral Personality of Brace and Caring Exemplars".

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In Episode 4 of The Carpenter Critique, host Luke Carpenter gives us a review of the Netflix hit movie, "People We Meet on Vaction" by comparing it to Qiaolan Su's research psychology study with Hezhou University, "Awakening the soul during travel: influence mechanism of memorable toursim experience on university students' life meaning".

In Episode 3 of The Carpenter Critique, host Luke Carpenter gives us a review of the emmy winning, reality TV show "Traitors" season 4 by comparing it to Tim Cole's research psychology study with DePaul University, "Lying to the one you love: The use of deception in romantic relationships."

In Episode 2 of The Carpenter Critique, host Luke Carpenter gives us a review of the hit TV show "Bridgerton" season 4 by comparing it to Emma Gerden's sociology thesis, "Social Class in Romantic Relationships: Understanding Cross-Class Romantic Relationships of University Students and Recent Graduates."

In Episode 1 of The Carpenter Critique, host Luke Carpenter dives into the psychology of heated rivalry and how competition can intensify attraction. Drawing on research about competitive arousal and physical attraction, this episode explores how rivalry raises physiological arousal—heart rate, hormones, and adrenaline—which can sometimes be misinterpreted by the brain as romantic attraction.

Using examples from pop culture and romance storytelling, Luke breaks down why competition can make relationships feel even more compelling. Expect psychology, media analysis, and a fun deep dive into why rivalry might just be the spark behind some of our favorite love stories. 🎬🧠

This episode is meant to give you a preview of what is to come and a background as to how this show was created and why it exists.