Question

Can you think of any television shows or movies in which characters with a severe psychological disorder were shown in a sympathetic light? If so, are such depictions more or less common than depictions of people with a mental illness as dangerous or violent?

Answer 1

It’s a fact that television shows and movies influence a culture and people’s thinking to a great extent. In such a scenario, it is important that movies made on mental health are more sympathetic towards people with mental disorders rather than doing a mockery in some way.

Yes, I know of the movie named “A Beautiful Mind”, where the character’s mental illness is shown in a sympathetic light. This 2001 movie is based on the life of a real mathematician who had developed paranoid schizophrenia. Instead of being shown as a monster, the character is displayed as a smart and sweet individual who is still awkward. It is shown how he cannot control his disorder and how it impacts his life and relationships. In a sympathetic way, it is shown how the character feels and suffers because of his mental illness, but still tries to live his life to its best.

While there are there are other such shows and movies that depict a mental illness in positive light, such depictions are definitely less common than depictions of people with a mental illness as dangerous or violent. In most cases, people with mental illnesses are misrepresented and shown as monsters or murderous, simply to engross people through psychological thrill.