Hollywood and The Bigger Picture

[Summer Rose]

My daughter asked me to watch a film with her the other day. It was one of her favourite movies that I had somehow missed called Perks of Being a Wallflower. It was a well scripted, touching, coming of age story that in my opinion dealt sensitively and fairly accurately with mental health and other tricky adolescent issues. My daughter said she loved the film because one of the main characters " is like me".

Like me. The words rolled around in my mind. It occurred to me that there are few film or TV characters that are actually like my beautiful girl, who suffers from anxiety and OCD. It also dawned on me that some of the characters currently on the screen who do have OCD are almost insulting. Take Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory, for example. He is a walking, talking billboard for the lighter side of autism and OCD but, in my opinion, his character does nothing to contribute to the community's greater understanding of what these conditions are really like to live with.

I think it's fair to estimate that the global television and movie industry makes billions of dollars annually telling stories about characters with mental health conditions. Oscar winning blockbusters such as, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Ordinary People, Silver Linings Playbook and a Beautiful Mind have certainly played a role in raising awareness, but is that enough?

Given that inaccurate film representations of mental illness can profoundly contribute to stigma and the reinforcement of unhelpful stereotypes, does the industry have a community obligation to inform? Or is just entertainment? Or does anything designed to raise awareness do some good? Love to hear what you think.

[Summer Rose]

Hi Quirky

I really appreciate your insights into the film Silver Linings Playbook. Especially that you found Bradly Cooper's character, who has bipolar, unbelievable. What that tells me is that my understanding of bipolar is probably quite lacking. I'm going to start reading your thread and improving my knowledge.

What I did like about the film was the backstory about his family and the impact his mental health condition had on those people around him. As a carer, you don't often get that insight in films. I couldn't relate to the characters as they were so over-the-top but it was nice to see an acknowledgement that when someone in the family falls ill with a mental health condition it affects everyone.

[Birdy77]

Hello Summer Rose, and everybody 😊

This is a really interesting thread, Summer Rose.

I don't have an insightful post as everybody else. (I did enjoy Silver Linings). This post is emotionally based rather than intellectual:

There is a movie I absolutely love, called Infinitely Polar Bear. I wondered what Quirky thought of it (or others with Bi Polar?) Or anybody else. It's set in the 70's -80's, so obviously things are different now.

It's about the struggles of a dad with bi polar taking care of his children. The children in it are amazing actors. I think Mark Ruffalo is wonderful, so maybe I'm biased, but I love it. And I thought it was sensitively done.

That's just my completely uneducated but honest perspective.

Thank you Summer Rose 😊

🌻birdy

[Summer Rose]

Hi MsPurple

Welcome! So glad you jumped in. I'm like you in that I like watching films with characters who have a mental illness because it makes me feel less isolated. One such film for me that we haven't yet spoken about is As Good as it Gets.

Jack Nicholson plays a character resigned to a stunted life with OCD, until he starts to fall in love with a woman and learns he wants much more, which is really challenging for him. It's over 20 years old but it has stuck with me. What movies have you enjoyed that have fulfilled this need for you in a meaningful way?

Thank you for highlighting that it would be so helpful if Hollywood could depict characters succeeding in life, despite their mental health conditions. I can think of a detective named Monk who was in a series. He was a successful detective but the weird thing was that while he was always getting treatment for his OCD, he never seemed to get better. And we all know that people do get better. Can anybody think of a better example?

I haven't seen the Glee episode you refer to but it certainly sounds like a great opportunity to better inform people was missed. This is one of my real gripes with the movie industry. For anyone else out there who wants to jump in this is where the thread started: Given that inaccurate film representations of mental illness can profoundly contribute to stigma and the reinforcement of unhelpful stereotypes, does the industry have a community obligation to inform? Or is just entertainment? Or does anything designed to raise awareness do some good?

[Just Sara]

Hey Summer! (Shout-outs to all who've posted too. What great responses!)

What a breath of fresh air; something to get my teeth into. I love all things TV, cinema and (sometimes) stage.

I totally get where you're all coming from. My point however goes slightly in another direction if I may. We shouldn't discount doco's and their valuable contribution in educating the masses. ABC and SBS provide wonderful viewing which a lot of the time comes from Aussie producers/directors. (Proud as punch I is!)

The most recent was a series called 'Employable Me' on the ABC. It followed individuals with disabilities while they looked for jobs and focused on obstacles they faced. The great thing about it was, people like 'Sheldon' (Asperger's) were highly sought after in very high paying positions. I found myself cheering, crying and laughing with them all. Highly recommended as doco's go.

Now, Sheldon Cooper is one of my fave Aspie's on telly. He's A-typical as far as Asperger's goes, but using humour to put it 'out there' is genius in my view. It wasn't that long ago talking about LGBTI issues was taboo. Trust 'Will and Grace' though to step up and give the community 'permission' to talk openly.

Characters are over the top in both series, and thank God! It makes for great entertainment while giving viewers something to gas bag about over the water fountain. They were pioneers and are remembered fondly because they played a huge role in making stigma funny.

How better to address fears and misinformation than to make people laugh? It cuts thru barriers like a butchers knife..

So NOW we can talk about Asperger's instead of whispering behind closed doors or asking; "What the hell is that? Never heard of it."

Btw, 'What about Bob?' is still one of my fave movies of all time. There's a little bit of him in all of us yeah? Ah ha ha..

Hi Romantic Thi3f;

Your post nearly made me cry. You described me in so many ways which sort of took away some of my guilt and shame. Thankyou so much! 🙂

Summer, I'm grateful for your presence here on BB. It's been wonderful engaging with you..

Sez xo

[White_Rose]

Hello Summer Rose

Long time no posts but I would like to comment on this question. Thanks for putting it up.

I am not a fan of 'entertainment' that portrays MI in ways that make it appear these people are their own worst enemies. I watched a Beautiful Mind and was happy with that film. I enjoyed One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. I used to watch Criminal Minds on TV until they started to have characters with MI. These were always the bad guy with no redeeming features. It was as though the script writer had a copy of DSM with whatever version was current then and loaded the character up with all the symptoms and portraying the extreme versions of each.

And of course the the police team always knew what was wrong with the person and what the character would do. It made the character predictable and therefore easy to catch. Well not entirely but you get the drift. In reality every person put in a diagnosed category is not the same and neither do they all have the same difficulties. It's like saying everyone with cancer can be treated the same way regardless of their particular cancer.

One ray of hope I have found is the journey of people with an intellectual disability. They are no longer, or not often, displayed as helpless or vicious or stupid. In fact they are now often portrayed in a positive light as people with their own thoughts and feelings. Not long ago they were referred to by all sorts of derogatory names. I think one of the reasons this has changed is partly due to legislation in Australia but also lots of work put in behind the scenes such as developing a dictionary of respectful ways of talking to PWAID. So maybe that's where we can start.

It's not simply the disrespectful way those with a MI are talked about, but the sniggers that accompany the remarks and the tacit belief that everyone thinks in the same way. I would love to give my depression to someone for a week as a reality check. Trouble is I may not want it back afterwards.

Using respectful language to or about anyone is simply a courtesy and I find it disgusting that groups of people are further victimised or traumatised by those who have absolutely no clue how MI affects anyone and how much they add to someone's burden.

But enough. I will get off my soapbox. Thanks for the topic Summer Rose.

Mary

[Summer Rose]

Hi there

From now on, Paul it is! Thank you

[Summer Rose]

Hi Birdy

Welcome aboard!

I haven't seen Infinitely Polar Bear, so we will both have to wait for others to chime in. The way you described it though was terrific and it sounds like a movie I would like to see.

An emotional critique is good! Films are supposed to touch our hearts, not just give our brains a work out. And I'm so glad that it brought you joy.

I think it's interesting in this film that the parent was the main character experiencing a mental health condition, as often the focus is on the child being unwell. I can't even imagine how hard that would be. What do you think was the main message of the film?

[MsPurple]

Hi everyone.
I do agree with Sara on how sometimes humor can help increase awareness and not make it akward for the audience. As I said a few shows don't quite do it justice and can actually be misinformative and make people feel worse about the condition (e.g. glee and the bulimia is one that pops into my head).

As I said I do like watching story lines with MI and how they show the audience their perspective cause it can help people understand, but they don't always do it well. I don't know I guess I'm a bit torn on this I guess. And now I'm waffling on.

Does anyone have a good example of a movie/tv show with MI? I do think docos do it well

[Birdy77]

Hello Summer Rose,

Thank you so much for your lovely and inclusive response.

For me, Infinitely Polar Bear is a beautiful story about the deep and unwavering love between a father and his children - in essence, it's about them as people, individuals, mental illness is part of the story, but the love and life they share comes first. It is so much about people and love first, illness second.

I would highly recommend this movie, it's so warm and loving and lovely.

Another movie I love is The Black Balloon, but not sure if this is within your scope of discussion.

Thanks again Summer Rose 😊

🌻birdy

[Summer Rose]

Hi Sez

I can't tell you how happy it made me to see your post pop up! I really want to thank you for joining in the conversation.

I'm in two minds about the potential benefits of making stigma funny. A lot of research shows that comedy and humour are often associated with endorsing negative stereotypes about social groups. Dumb blonde jokes are a prime example. Having said that, the effects of comedy are ultimately defined by people because after all it's all about the individual way we react to humour.

You and 23 million other viewers love Sheldon Cooper. I certainly can't argue that The Big Bang Theory hasn't been effective in raising awareness about autism or deny that a phenomenal amount of people find it funny. Yet I'm not really comfortable laughing at normal behaviour for an autistic person with OCD traits, in exactly the same way as I wouldn't laugh at my daughter's OCD behaviour.

Audiences may chuckle because Sheldon continuously knocks three times on Penny's door, but I can tell you it wasn't funny when I couldn't start the car until my daughter had tapped on the roof 60 times. I much preferred The Black Balloon, which was an authentic demonstration of what it's like to live with autism using comedy. So I guess that's a perfect demonstration of how powerful the personal reaction part is when we're judging the effectiveness of the humour.

I liked your observations about documentaries. I love them. They are an incredible art form and make an important contribution to education. Employable Me was fantastic and in general I believe the ABC does a marvellous job leading the nation in mental health conversations and promoting diversity.

I always look forward to Mental As, an ABC TV, radio and online extravaganza conducted to coincide with Mental Health week each year. Incidentally, comedians make up a big part of this effort. How do you feel about stand-up comedians using mental health experiences to entertain?