Whilst perusing Netflix to find an Asian drama, Mad World popped up in my recommendations. Considering mental illness is still rather hush-hush in the east, I didn't have high hopes that Mad World would cover the topic with subtly and honesty. Color me surprised; after spending the last hour and 41 minutes with my eyes glued to the screen, I realized that not only is this one of the best portrayals of mental illness (Bipolar Disorder, specifically) I've ever seen put to film, but Mad World now competes for the best movie I've watched yet this year. How this film isn't more well-known and awarded flabbergasts me.
Mad World follows the broken perspective of Tung, a man suffering from Bipolar Disorder in Hong Kong who is released from a mental institution and forced to integrate once more into society and the shattered life he's left behind. We aren't clued in to all the details of Tung's life and unhappiness right away; we know he's depressed, missing his fiancee, and that he has a strained relationship with the father he comes to live with. Further details are lovingly sprinkled throughout the film in heart-wrenching flashbacks with perfect timing; never was I confused about the order of events or the impact they had on Tung's psyche. I come from a family plagued with mental illness; Bipolar Disorder affected both my mother and brother, and contributed to the far too early demise of my brother just last month. The manic/depressive phases of this horrific illness are both laid out here in all their painful, raw glory; the highs are sky-high, and the lows are in the pits of depressive purgatory. It isn't just Tung who suffers; his mother clearly has mental difficulties as well, and the other brother and father have their own realistic ways of dealing with it.
The performances here are all stellar. Tung's blank stares of utter hopelessness perfectly mimic those I have seen (and given) time and again when dealing with similar illnesses in my own life. Tung's father's helplessness comes through in many scenes, and his well-meaning but misguided attempts to soothe his adult son are all too realistic to what many of us suffering from depression hear: "Why can't you just be normal?" and "Why are you like this?" and "Can't you try to be cheerful?" The judgements of others play a large role here as well: Tung's fiancee accidentally makes a tense situation worse in a pivotal scene, while leering bystanders see mental illness as a spectacle to jeer.
Mad World is not a "fun" movie to watch, nor is it heartfelt in the way that most would hope, with everything being fixed at the end and tied up nicely with a neat little bow. Parts of it angered me. Depressed me. Saddened me. But most of all, as someone who has dealt with this personally, it made me feel like I am not alone. Mad World does not sugarcoat the ugly parts of mental illness, whether they are born out of the ill or those who try to support them. It is for this reason that I found it an absolute and ironic breath of fresh air, for it is depressingly beautiful in its candor.
Some last minute thoughts: the camerawork was particularly interesting here, aiding the film's dreary atmosphere. For one example, it utilized long shots of the small apartment to make you confront its claustrophobic and cramped nature. The music was perfect: it fit the mood and was used sparingly. The movie felt a bit longer than its runtime, but since every minute was engrossing, I can't fault it for that. Lastly, the characters don't grow much--if at all--during the movie. While this normally would be a flaw, it makes sense for a film about mental illness. Sometimes those affected cannot strive for higher goals--sometimes they just need to learn how to *deal* to make it through the day and get to tomorrow alive. Mad World isn't a film about a man's journey to overcome his mental illness; it's more of a day-in-the-life, where we experience what he goes through for a short time and can only hope for the best for him by the time the credits roll.
Mad World is a beautiful film that I recommend to anyone with mental illness, who knows someone with mental illness, or is open-minded enough to try to understand what living with it is like. Make sure you're in the mood to watch it, however, as it's so effective at what it does it might make you feel worse.
