Films Illustrating Psychopathology Danny Wedding Mary Ann Boyd ...

240 Movies and Mental Illness
with mental retardation who was forced to leave an
institution after 46 years in this made-for-TV movie.
Boy Who Could Fly, The (1986) Fantasy ΨΨ
Love story about the affection that develops
between a teenage girl whose father has just committed
suicide and a new neighbor who is autistic.
“Why is that people who would
never dream of making fun of a
blind man or a cripple will make
fun of a retard?”
Charly wonders about
the cruelty of people
in Charly
Charly (1968) Drama ΨΨ
Cliff Robertson won an Oscar for his role as man
with mental retardation who is transformed into a
genius, only to find himself reverting to a state of
retardation. (Compare this film with Molly [1999].)
Child Is Waiting, A (1963) Drama ΨΨ
Burt Lancaster and Judy Garland star in this film
about the treatment of children with mental retardation
living in institutions.
City of Lost Children, The (1995) Fantasy/
Drama ΨΨΨΨ
A mad scientist is aging prematurely so he tries to
capture children to steal their dreams. The circus
strongman named One, who has a developmental
disability, teams up with a bold, bright young girl
to save the children.
Dangerous Woman, A (1993) Drama ΨΨ
Debra Winger plays a woman with mild mental
retardation who becomes involved with an itinerant
alcoholic.
Day in the Life of Joe Egg, A (1972) Comedy ΨΨ
British black comedy that examines the issue of
mercy killing.
Dodes’ka-den (1970) Drama ΨΨΨ
Akira Kurosawa film about a boy with mental
retardation living in the slums of Tokyo. This was
Kurosawa’s first color film. Although now regarded
as a classic, this film was not well received by
the public or by critics when it was released, and
it’s failure led to Kurosawa’s attempt to commit
suicide by slashing his wrists in 1971. Kurosawa
died in 1998 in Tokyo.
Dominick and Eugene (1988) Drama ΨΨΨΨ
A man with mild mental retardation works picking
up garbage so he can send his brother to medical
school. The story revolves around the relationship
between the two brothers and provides good
insight into the quality of life possible for someone
who is mildly mentally retarded.
Forrest Gump (1994) Fantasy ΨΨΨΨ
Traces the life of Forrest Gump, who triumphs in
life despite an IQ of 75 and a deformed spine. The
film will make you examine your stereotypes about
mental retardation.
Forrest Gump: “Lieutenant Dan,
what are you doing here?”
Lieutenant Daniel Taylor:
“I’m here to try out my
sea legs.”
Forrest Gump: “But you ain’t got
no legs, Lieutenant Dan.”
Forrest Gump
House of Cards (1993) Drama Ψ
Tommy Lee Jones is wasted in an insipid movie
about a young girl who becomes autistic and
withdrawn.
I Am Sam (2001) Drama ΨΨΨ
Sean Penn portrays a man with mild mental
retardation who fights for custody rights for
his daughter.
Larry (1974) Biography ΨΨ
Dated but still interesting film about a man discharged
from a psychiatric hospital and forced to
cope with the outside world. The film suggests the
patient himself isn’t really ill but still acts strange
because he has grown up in a world where everyone
acts a little odd.
Molly (1999) Drama Ψ
This film tries hard to be Rain Man with a female
autistic character (Elisabeth Shue) but ends up
being highly stereotypic, unrealistic, and unhelpful
in educating the public about autism.
From: Wedding, D., Boyd, M.A., & Niemiec, R.M. Movies and Mental Illness: Using Films to Understand Psychopathology
© 2005 Hogrefe & Huber Publishers (www.hogrefe.com)