The following article contains discussions of mental health conditions, violence, and suicide.
While the entertainment industry is notorious for misrepresenting many illnesses, conditions, and disorders, there are many movie characters who accurately portray mental health. Cinema has had a dubious history of portraying mental health in an authentic or even sensitive light. The perceived dramatic nature of a mental illness has notoriously meant it's too often conveyed as a means to broadcast sentimentality or sensationalism. Additionally, "madness" has been used by horror films as a justification for all kinds of unspeakable acts. However, Hollywood also occasionally gets it right, and there are plenty of movie characters with mental disorders that aren't portrayed problematically.
The exploration of mental illness and mental health disorders in movies has improved dramatically over the last few decades, with an emphasis on authenticity and care towards humanization. Depictions that are seen as genuine across myriad genres,...
While the entertainment industry is notorious for misrepresenting many illnesses, conditions, and disorders, there are many movie characters who accurately portray mental health. Cinema has had a dubious history of portraying mental health in an authentic or even sensitive light. The perceived dramatic nature of a mental illness has notoriously meant it's too often conveyed as a means to broadcast sentimentality or sensationalism. Additionally, "madness" has been used by horror films as a justification for all kinds of unspeakable acts. However, Hollywood also occasionally gets it right, and there are plenty of movie characters with mental disorders that aren't portrayed problematically.
The exploration of mental illness and mental health disorders in movies has improved dramatically over the last few decades, with an emphasis on authenticity and care towards humanization. Depictions that are seen as genuine across myriad genres,...
- 1/8/2025
- by Kayleena Pierce-Bohen, Colin McCormick, Amanda Bruce
- ScreenRant
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