04 Oct 5 Mental Health Movies You Should Watch
Movies represent some of the most detailed and personal depictions of the human psyche – especially if the scriptwriters and producers make them not appear superficial. In this article, we have listed 5 mental health movies you should watch if you are dealing with mental health issues.
5 Mental Health Movies You Should Watch
In a study done by experts at University College London and Vue Cinema, it was discovered that watching movies increased viewers’ ability to concentrate and fixate on the story.
The truth is that everyone, young and old, is affected in some way by mental health difficulties, whether you have a condition yourself or have a friend, family member, or acquaintance who has a need.
This list includes films that address a variety of health issues, from high-functioning schizophrenia to the simple challenge of socially interacting with one’s classmates. Stay on as we dive into the 5 mental health movies you should watch.
The Breakfast Club (1985)
A group of high school students are served detention orders as punishment and we quickly recognise the archetypes: rebel, nerd, athlete, popular girl, and kook.
We also quickly discover that they all are experiencing pressure that jeopardises their mental health.
Brian (Anthony Michael Hall) attempted suicide by using a flare pistol. Andrew (Emilio Estevez) feels compelled to intimidate others, and John (Judd Nelson) comes from a violent background.
Andrew (Emilio Estevez) also had borderline emotional abuse from his father.
Many people can connect to The Breakfast Club’s exploration of the area between those who seem to be “just fine” and those who are on the verge of collapse.
We’re all slightly strange if there are things to take away from the movie. Simply put, some of us are good at hiding it better.
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Still Alice (2015)
This one will make you cry. In the movie Still Alice, Julianne Moore plays a professor of linguistics who is dealing with an early-onset Alzheimer’s diagnosis.
The painful movie follows the hardships of the family members who remain by her side and the ones who can no longer see her decline as her memory deteriorates and she strives to maintain order in her life.
Charlie Bartlett (2008)
Charlie Bartlett, like The Breakfast Club, seeks the same goal that all movies about mental health strive for: to transmit the message that mental health impacts all of us.
Bartlett (Anton Yelchin) though given many privileges, growing up without a father has pushed him to rebel and withdraw. He also suffers from ADHD.
When he transfers to public school, he discovers that he isn’t the only kid with profound concerns, as other students begin to confide in him about their issues with family, body image, sexuality, and other topics.
Though his approach to assisting people is unusual it helps him discover his true calling.
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The Aviator (2004)
Leonardo DiCaprio plays Howard Hughes, a well-known businessman, movie producer, and pilot whose life of extravagant spending and relationships with Hollywood actresses is jeopardised as his obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) starts to take control.
We discover that his family has a history of OCD as his condition deteriorates and his life starts to fall apart.
Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
You’ll understand why Silver Linings Playbook had to be on our list if you’ve watched it. The entire movie seeks to redefine what it means to have a mental illness, using the stigmatising epithet “crazy” to do so.
Tiffany and Pat, the educated and seemingly “normal” main protagonists who suffer from undiagnosed mental disease and bipolar disorder, respectively, are what kept the movie engaging.
Despite some criticism for the film’s portrayal of mental illness, Harvard Medical School psychiatrist Steven Schlozman, MD, told Vulture that he enjoyed it.
“It’s Hollywood,” he remarked, “so there will always be things that are there for the story rather than for realism.”
“However, they did a good job of depicting manic depressive sickness or bipolar condition in someone who is extremely intelligent and has a limited but current grasp of it.”
In conclusion, some movies sometimes misrepresent mental health issues by making characters who have a problem look different from everyone else.
However, they also help people with mental health issues know the steps to take toward healing and being better. If you are one of such people, you should see these movies.
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