In honor of Mental Health Awareness Week, MSN.com has compiled a list of 20 films they believe have gotten mental health issues right.
1. Palm Springs (2020)
-Summary: A sci-fi romantic comedy focusing on two wedding guests, Nyles (Andy Samberg) and Sarah (Cristin Milioti) who are stuck in an infinite time loop, repeating the same day over and over again, almost identical to Groundhog Day.
-This movie references depression and anxiety, as the characters wake up each day, feeling unhappy, lonely and not seeing any resolution to their issues. Not all movies dealing with mental health need to have psychiatric evals. People can relate to this movie because there is a subtle nod to mental health issues at play here
2. A Beautiful Mind (2001)
-Summary: An American mathematician named John Nash (Russell Crowe) is diagnosed with schizophrenia. Early in his career, he made a discovery that would win him international fame, but his schizophrenia threatens to destroy it
-Russell Crowe was said to nail each and every exact step showing the progression of schizophrenia, from mannerisms to behaviors associated with this widely known mental health disorder. It's also shown in this movie the stigmas facing those who battle this condition every day. Even experts in mental health agreed that Russell Crowe's role in here helped people better understand the condition known as schizophrenia
3. Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
-Summary: A family takes a cross country trip in their VW Microbus to get their youngest daughter in to the finals for a beauty pageant
-In this movie, the patriarch Frank Ginsberg (Steve Carrell), suffers from Major Depressive Disorder, which can often lead to suicide attempts. After attempting suicide, he goes to live with his sister's family. His character shows what it is like to live with Major Depressive Disorder. The rapid changes in mood, how to function every day without letting it control your life and that, with treatment, you can live your life to the fullest and that things do get better with time
4. Good Will Hunting (1997)
-Summary: Will Hunting is a janitor at the famed M.I.T. He has a talent for high-level mathematics, but he suffers from mental health issues and needs help from a psychologist to find meaning in his life
-This movie explores the troubles and often mental health issues that stem from abuse. Matt Damon's character talks to a psychologist named Sean Maguire (Robin Williams) about his horrifying child abuse. He was also diagnosed with attachment disorder, a somewhat unknown condition that involves difficulty in developing adult relationships. At the time of the release, it was still considered very taboo about men opening up about trauma. It was often thought that only females could endure child abuse, usually of the sexual kind, not always the physical kind. That men were never abused as children. This movie changes the way we look at men's mental health. Any health expert will state that men or women can suffer from any type of abuse or mental health issues
5. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
-Summary: When their relationship goes south, a couple undergo a medical procedure to erase each other from their memories
-The couple in this movie both show they have mental health issues at play. Jim Carrey's character Joel shows signs of having anxiety and depression while Kate Winslet's character Clementine shows she has borderline personality disorder. Clementine is seen as wild, impulsive while Joel is seen as more reserved and reflective. This movie shows that people can coexist together while also trying to handle their mental health
6. The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)
-Summary: A 15 year old is about to enter high school. He's an introvert and is nervous. He befriends a group of seniors and they help him process and deal with his troubled past and his friend's recent suicide
-In this movie, the stigma of depression is addressed. Fears of ridicule for being hospitalized due to depression. PTSD after a traumatic event. This film addresses, in the most tender, caring way, trauma, abuse and the stigma of PTSD and what it looks like from the teenaged perspective
7. Eight Grade (2018)
-Summary: A shy eighth grader tries to survive the last week of school before moving on to high school
-Like most teens, she's almost obsessed with social media. Teens addicted to social media can sometimes develop and use it to overcome social anxiety. Creating online personas help those with social anxiety feel accepted somewhere and give them confidence they normally don't have in real life. Some regard this movie as nothing more than a silly, coming of age movie about teens learning to find themselves, but it does address the issue of teens and social media and the influence social media has on people's mental health
8. First Blood (1982)
-Summary: A Vietnam War-ravaged Green Beret is simply on his way to meet up with his former teammates. But a cruel sheriff and his deputies, unaware that this man suffers from PTSD, trigger the man's flashbacks and blows up into a war between the soldier and the sheriff
-This movie shows exactly the kind of trauma that Vietnam War veterans suffered from. They suffer from PTSD, which, in their case, is also known as "Vietnam Syndrome". It's flashbacks of what they saw, what they endured, what they were forced to do and more. This movie also explores survivor's guilt, as the main character witnessed the death of a friend from a roadside bomb. Mental health experts were just now beginning to explore "Vietnam Syndrome" in the early 80s, as the Vietnam War had just ended several years prior. This film handled the concept of PTSD and "Vietnam Syndrome" perfectly; it was even considered ahead of its time and well handled for an action film
9. Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
-Summary: A former teacher spends time in a mental hospital and when he gets out, he moves in with his parents while trying to fix issues with his ex-wife. When he meets a woman named Tiffany, who has issues of her own, things get worse
-This movie shows what it is like to live with bipolar disorder, the symptoms, the types of episodes that can occur. This movie shows what a rollercoaster of emotions that bipolar disorder is. How it can affect relationships and your life
10. Copycat (1995)
-Summary: A psychologist suffering from agoraphobia and a female detective team up to stop a serial killer who killing in the styles of serial killers from the past
-Here panic disorder with agoraphobia is mentioned. This movie shows what it is like to not feel safe in your surroundings and how any little change might trigger a panic attack
11. All the Bright Places (2020)
-Summary: Two people, Violet Markey (Elle Fanning) and Theodore Finch (Justice Smith) both with emotional and physical scars from their troubled pasts, meet and change each other's lives for the better
-This movie explores teen depression and how living with mental health issues makes you feel alone. Violet suffers from depression after learning her sister died in a car crash. Theodore suffers from bipolar disorder that has not been diagnosed. Unfortunately for Theo, mental health is often highly stigmatized in black communities, and in the case of Theo, he has an abusive parent and the fear of being judged for his bipolar disorder making things worse. This film shows just how much you should support your loved ones when they're hurting inside
12. As Good As It Gets (1997)
-Summary: Three unlikely people, a gay artist, an author with OCD and a single mother with a sick child, form an unusual friendship after the artist is beaten during a robbery
-Jack Nicholson perfectly captures what it is like to live with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). From repetitive actions such as locking doors, turning off lights, fear of contamination and constant doubt to intrusive thoughts. But this film shows that those with OCD can learn to manage what triggers the condition and undergo treatment to live a good life
13. Cake (2014)
-Summary: A patient in a chronic pain group is still reeling over the loss of her son in a car accident. A fellow group member commits suicide and Claire starts exploring the idea of self-harm.
-In this movie, you see what physical and emotional toll chronic pain can have on someone. It can push them to the point of self-harm, even depression and suicide. Jennifer Aniston shows exactly what going through chronic pain can do to a person's mental health
14. The Skeleton Twins (2014)
-Summary: Two siblings hope to mend their relationship after cheating death on the same day
-Here, you can see two different forms of depression-smiling depression and clinical depression. This film highlights all the trademarks of both forms. One character is happy, content, seemingly carefree. The other is more reserved, dealing with bouts of tiredness and sadness. It shows the wide range of emotions that can one can suffer with. It also breaks that stigma that says depressed people are only sad and broken
15. The Hours (2002)
-Summary: Three generations of women, in one way or another, are affected by suicide in their lives and how the novel Mrs. Dalloway helps them
-This movie shows that back then, help for mental health was all but nonexistent. That the only solution was to forget it, move on, cheer up or something else
16. Black Swan (2010)
-Summary: Nina, a talented ballerina, is on the brink of stardom. A seductive rival and her artistic director push her to her limits and eventually her grip on reality starts slipping, sending her to a nightmarish life
-In this movie, the topic of psychosis is explored. The main character has hallucinations that seem so real. This is one common trait of psychosis. While it's not diagnosed, it worsens over time, and gives people a great idea of what struggling with psychosis is like
17. Garden State (2004)
-Summary: A man battling personal demons returns to his home state of New Jersey for his mother's funeral after being estranged from his family for over a decade
-One thing about depression. It can leave a numbing feeling on those affected by it. The main character here is suffering from depression. It can leave a person feeling numb, detached, emotionless. It alters the theory that if you find happiness, you'll be cured for good. This movie shows the struggle to stay medicated, stay on the path that will cure your depression
18. Melancholia (2011)
-Summary: Two sisters, with an already strained relationship, face a new challenge as a mysterious new planet threatens to hit Earth
-Lars Von Trier, the director of the film, has suffered with depressive episodes. The main character, Justine (Kirsten Dunst) is slipping into deep depression. She becomes fatigued, thin and is seemingly unable to pull herself out from the darkness of depression. Von Trier shows just how depression can affect some people
19. It's Kind of a Funny Story (2010)
-Summary: A teenager contemplating suicide checks himself into a mental health facility. He's not allowed to medically signed out until he's proved he's not a threat to himself
-This movie explores the concept behind depression so strong it leads to thoughts of suicide. Talking about those who contemplate suicide can be a risky subject, but this movie shows what it is like for those who contemplate suicide and show the steps they take to try and overcome those feelings
20. Benny & Joon (1993)
-Summary: A young woman, suffering from undiagnosed mental illness, lives with her brother, who takes care of her. She falls in love with a unique young man who fashions himself after Buster Keaton
-While the condition Joon (Mary Stuart Masterson) is never diagnosed, this movie shows just how multi-layered mental health conditions can go. It also shows that people with mental health conditions should be given the chance to move away from being dependent on one person and live life as they should, despite their mental health. It shows that someone can live a full life, even with mental health concerns
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