MHA's Blog: Chiming In

It’s Kind of a Funny Story is a sweet little movie that manages to do something almost unheard of in movies about mental health, especially those in mental hospitals. It treats all of its characters, the patients, the doctors and the love interests, as real people. Heck, it’s even better at character creation than most movies not about people with mental illnesses.

The movie is about a teenager named Craig Gilner. Stressed out from the pressures of school, an application for a prestigious summer program and his friends, he dreams about committing suicide. Concerned, he checks himself into the psychiatric ward of the local hospital, where he is housed with the adults. He meets Bobby, an older man with depression, and the two become friends. He learns about himself through his week on the ward, and about all of the other patients. He even begins to date another teenaged patient named Noelle. By the end of the week, Craig has learned about himself and leaves the ward with a more positive outlook on life.

The plot of the movie probably sounds a bit clichéd, and it is, but the topics are handled in a fantastic way. After watching all of the terrible mental hospital clichés on American Horror Story, it was startling to see people treated with respect, especially sick people. The movie managed to show the differences between the slang use of the term depressed and the clinical use of depression, but respect that both of those uses come with challenges. Craig is not clinically depressed-his stress and anxiety over his life has piled up, but he does not meet the criteria for clinical depression. However, he’s not in a good place at the beginning of the movie. His symptoms are contrasted with his roommate Muqtada, who has not left his bed since he came to the ward. Both of the men deal with their feelings as best they can, and reaching new goals appropriate for them - Craig’s new found love of drawing and Muqtada’s going out into the hallway. Craig’s friend on the ward, Bobby interacts with his daughter and (presumed) ex-wife, and his importance as a father is explicitly stated. This level of respect for characters is rare, but rarer when a character has a mental illness. I kept expecting it to veer into some horrible cliché, but it mercifully never did.

Even the therapy sessions are shown accurately. Art therapy, music therapy, group therapy and talk therapy are all represented, and done well. At art therapy, the counselor tells Craig that it doesn’t matter what his picture looks like, only that it represents him. Music therapy has all of the patients playing musical instruments together. The scene becomes a dream sequence of Craig and the group playing “Under Pressure”, so we do hear the results per say, but everyone seems to be enjoying it. In sessions with Dr. Minerva (played by the ever-wonderful Viola Davis), Craig talks about what is actually bothering him. At one point, she asks about his parents, and jokes, “I’m a therapist. I have to ask at least once.” In group therapy, the group members help one another and are supportive. They discuss an issue in the cafeteria, and come up with ways to resolve the issue.

I would guess that the movie is probably more on the positive side of things than the realistic side, but you know what? For once, that’s a pleasant change. The negative side isn’t erased, just downplayed. Noelle has scars on her face and arms from her cutting. Craig is afraid of the man with schizophrenia at the beginning of the movie, and tells Dr. Minerva that he thought that they would just “give him some pills.” He also tells her that he thought he would be in a place with “people more like me.” Over the length of the movie, he realizes that he is in place with people like him, people who happen to be sick. It is subtly done, but it a terrific way to address the stigma of mental illness.

As you can probably tell, I genuinely like It’s Kind of a Funny Story. I’ve been watching a lot of pop culture where mental illness or mental health is addressed, and none come this close to reality. I’d rather have someone see this movie and think that all mental hospitals have pizza parties and dancing, than thinking that everyone with a mental illness is a serial killer. Mental health is highlighted as an important component of life. It shows that mental wellness is as crucial as physical health and treatment helps rather than making things worse. It might be an overly rosy outlook, but having a few more movies like this can only help. I’d recommend you rush out and get this movie on DVD or on iTunes-then show it to your friends.

Next week, we’re going to discuss The Silver Linings Playbook, to see what all of the fuss is about. Have you seen It’s Kind of A Funny Story? What did you think? What is your favorite depiction of mental health in movies?