Movies and Mental Health: Learning About Ourselves Through Watching Stories
Struggling with your mental health can feel isolating. It can feel like no one understands you, like you’re alone with some condition that makes you “different” than everyone else. It can be hard to find any form of connection in a world that values perfection and idealism. However, thousands of people deal with mental health struggles every day and tell their stories to connect with those in a similar place. One medium that has provided a number of mental health stories is film. This blog will introduce a series of upcoming blogs that will be looking at different films that portray mental health, covering various concerns and analyzing the quality of their depiction.
Depicting mental health through movies
Every year, hundreds of movies are produced and released to the public, telling various stories with many themes and ideas coming to light. Many films, especially in recent years, cover mental health themes in a poignant way. There is something powerful about seeing a person facing the same issues as you on the big screen. Seeing their story and allowing yourself to be immersed in their emotions can be humanizing. It can allow you to feel heard and seen for ninety minutes, and sits with you as you move on to your daily life.
Historical parallels between film and psychology
For better or worse, film and psychology share a lot of the same historical development. Both can be traced back to ancient times either through storytelling traditions that extend thousands of years into our history, or to ancient medicine and healing practices. However, their modern histories also both began at the same time, around the end of the nineteenth century. Beginning their modern development around the same time has led to a large history of intersection between the two fields. This intersection has had both pros and cons.
As many know, the history of the field of psychology is a messy one, with a lot of stigma toward people with mental health conditions clouding many of the early years of the field. This is evident in many older films as well: mental health’s depictions in the mid-twentieth century were damaging to the public and contributed to many negative internal emotions that people still hold today. Additionally, older depictions of therapy caused many stereotypes about the profession and created a barrier for people seeking therapy.
Overcoming mental health stigmas and improved storytelling in movies
There’s good news though! As the field of psychology has improved its research, methods, and understanding of mental health, the depiction of mental health in the film industry also improved and expanded. Today, we see a variety of films showing us the stories and experiences of people dealing with a variety of issues and seeking help from different types of therapists. While not every film is perfect, the industry is seeing higher rates of films that cover themes of depression, anxiety, PTSD, loneliness, and more in a genuine, well-researched fashion.
Beyond the historical parallels between film and psychology, there are many aspects of a film itself that can be powerful for discussing and understanding mental health. Films often include special attention to the visual and audio details. The colors, decorations, scene cuts, transitions, sound cues… they are all important to telling the overall story and creating the picture a film tries to tell. Each aspect can be important, especially when talking about something as complex as mental health. Additionally, films are accessible. They can be watched and rewatched, found and shared. Films provide a way for us to connect as people and understand each other through a common story experience.
Dissecting mental health-focused films
This upcoming series will be tapping into these qualities in mental health-focused films by providing films that positively illustrate and humanize mental health conditions. Each blog will look at a specific film and analyze its development of a certain character and their mental health concerns. Throughout the blog, there will be a special attention given to the stories and humanity these films show. The films chosen will be specially curated to depict the complex, yet real, emotions that so many people face with mental health. Some films on tap include Inside Out 2 (Anxiety), A Real Pain (Depression), Lilo & Stitch (Loneliness and Loss), Thunderbolts* (Depression), and Beautiful Boy (Substance Use).
So, please follow LifeSpring Counseling Services’ website and social media over the next few months as we explore how the film industry has depicted mental health in recent years. Whether you’re feeling alone in a new place, struggling to understand how to cope with a recent loss, or need a way to explain your anxiety to a friend or family member, film can provide an outlet of expression and humanization to hopefully improve whatever you may be facing.
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Written by: Jackson Borchers, Counseling Intern at LifeSpring Counseling Services
