Final Project:  The Portrayal of Mental Disorders in American Cinema

Alyssa MacDonald

Some of the most popular films made in America have portrayed some kind of mental illness. The illness itself is not always diagnosed in the film, and may not be a real mental disorder at all. In American cinema the accurate depiction of mental disorders have not been much of a priority. Very often the illnesses are exaggerated, dangerous, or just plain fictional. People suffering from mental illness are rarely a threat, but on screen they have potential to be a nightmare. This has aided the manifestation of stigma towards individuals with mental illness in America. It has also created a misunderstanding about how to properly treat such individuals. This fantastic depiction of mental illness throughout American Cinema may not be beneficial for the image of mental illness, but after all it’s about all about entertainment. 

One of the earlier American films featuring mental illness is Cat People (1942), and RKO pictured directed by Jacques Tourneur. The film focuses on a siberian born fashionista, Irena (Simone Simon) living in New York city. She falls in love with a man named Oliver and they get married. They begin to have marriage issues because Irena refuses to be intimate with her new husband, believing she will turn into a jungle cat as a consequence. Believing his wife is delusional, Oliver sends her to a psychiatrist. Her paranoid delusions grow worse as the movie goes on. Irena is portrayed as dangerous and uncontrollable. Eventually the audience is left to believe that perhaps Irena’s delusions were reality. This movie is a fantastical horror that ends in tragedy for the mentally ill character.

Possessed (1947) is a Warner Bros. picture directed by Curtis Bernhardt. It is a drama, film noir, and a thriller. The film’s plot depicts a young woman, Louise (Joan Crawford) who suffers from borderline personality disorder. She becomes obsessed with a man named David. Eventually her obsession grows out of control and she is admitted into a psychiatric ward. Louise’s absurd behaviors are highlighted, and her actions eventually cause a murder. 

The Three Faces of Eve (1957) is a Fox film directed by Nunnally Johnson. The main character is a quite and unassertive housewife (Joanne Woodward). She begins experiencing headaches and blackouts. Eventually she sees a therapist who practices hypnosis. After being put into a hypnotic state, a new personality emerges from her, who is racy and rebellious. Later in the film another personality emerges. She struggles to co-exist with these personalities and her husband become increasingly concerned. Eventually she is hospitalized. After seeking out more assistance from the therapist he comes up with a possible reason behind her illness; a childhood trauma. 

Psycho (1960) is a horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The plot begins with a young woman who steals money, flees, and rests at a motel. The real focus is on the proprietor of the motel, Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) who is psychologically troubled. He seems to suffer from some form of psychosis and split personality disorder. He is very homicidal. He has severe mother issues, and kills any woman he seems attracted to. He keeps his dead mother’s carcass whom he talks to. He also dresses up as his mother from time to time. Throughout the film he is portrayed as very delusional and dangerous. Although he has the ability to seem normal, even charming. 

Play Misty for Me (1971) is a Universal picture directed by Clint Eastwood. Eastwood plays a DJ who has a one night stand with a fan. The fan Evelyn, (Jessica Walter) is soon revealed to be a dangerous stalker. She has an unhealthy obsession with the DJ. She soon begins to disrupt his life and threaten his girlfriend. Evelyn’s actions are crazed and eventually dangerous.

The next film is slightly similar. Fatal Attraction (1987) is a Paramount picture directed by Adrian Lyne. Dan (Michael Douglas) has a wife and kids but it doesn’t keep him from having a one night stand with a colleague Alex (Glenn Close). Alex soon develops a frightening obsession with Dan. During the movie she threatens self harm, claims she is pregnant, and blackmails. She stalks and constantly calls Dan. She kills his family pet and cooks it. She even kidnaps Dan’s daughter. Alex supposedly suffers from borderline personality disorder.

Silence of the Lambs (1991) is a thriller directed by Jonathan Demme. In the film a young FBI cadet (Jodie Foster) must work with a homicidal man (Anthony Hopkins) who is incarcerated in an asylum. Clarice, the cadet, struggles to get information regarding another serial killer from Lector (Hopkins). He is manipulative, plays mind games, and forces Clarice to figure out puzzles in order to get the information that she wants. Lector is a complex character whom disturbing behaviors mystify others. He kills for pleasure, and has been known to ingest his victims. His behaviors loosely resemble antisocial personality disorder. He is very witty and charming, and fails to feel remorse. 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001919/

Memento (2000) is a thriller directed by Christopher Nolan. The entire film focuses on a man suffering from short term memory loss. The man, Leonard (Guy Pierce) uses the tattoos covering his body and other clues in order to track down the man he thinks murdered his wife. He suffers anterograde amnesia, meaning he can’t form new long term memories. His brain was injured causing the disorder. 

Real cases of medial temporal lobe damage (That cause this type of amnesia) have other significant brain issues, while Leonard only has the memory formation problem. Also he is completely aware of his disorder which isn’t possible considering the disorder itself. A memory disorder like this makes a person completely dependent on others and inhibits majority of normal functioning. Leonard on the other hand is quite independent and completely functional. 

http://voices.yahoo.com/memento-analysis-presented-amnesia-2876279.html

A Beautiful Mind (2001) is a Universal picture directed by Ron Howard. The film is based on the life of an actual schizophrenic mathematician. John Nash (Russel Crow) was always different. He was slightly introverted but very intelligent. Over time Nash begins displaying some extremely odd, erratic thoughts and behaviors. In due time he is institutionalized for schizophrenia and becomes completely withdrawn. His symptoms eventually subside and he can rejoin society. 

The real John Nash didn’t see visual hallucinations. He had delusions and some paranoia. The film didn’t follow closely the Nash’s actual life. 

One of the most recent portrayals of mental illness is Black Swan (2010). It is a Fox drama/thriller directed by Darren Aronofsky. The main character is Nina (Natalie Portman) a ballerina working for the NYC ballet company. Her controlling mother and sense of perfectionism causes Nina extreme anxiety. Throughout the movie she is trying to fit both swan roles for the ballet Swan Lake. She forms a competitive and unhealthy relationship with a fellow ballerina. The pressure and demands get to Nina who begins to mutilate herself and vomit. She develops severe paranoia and delusions. Eventually she experiences hallucinations. She becomes increasingly violent and eventually commits suicide. 

In the beginning films were slightly less realistic in their depiction of mental illness, although over times it became more outlandish in different ways. A noticeable theme is the lack of control exhibited by the individuals suffering from the illness. They are portrayed as dangerous to the point of being homicidal. Women with borderline personality disorder are shown as having infatuations and being obsessive. That is not a usually symptom of that disorder. Also they are usually only dangerous to themselves, not to others. It is difficult to create an accurate perception of mental illness in film. Mental illnesses are mental. A lot of it is in the patient’s heads. That is difficult to reflect on film. Also rarely do the characters recover from their illnesses in the film, they often are shown spiraling into madness. In reality individuals have up and downs throughout their illness. If films were more accurate regarding mental illness it’s unknown wether they would be the american classics they are today. 

Main reference used:  

"The Internet Movie Database (IMDb)." The Internet Movie Database (IMDb). N.p., n.d. Web. 14 May 2012. <http://www.imdb.com/>.