Yes, there are definitely good movies about mental health out there, and the upcoming Thanksgiving break or December holidays are a perfect time for a holiday watch party focused on mental health issues.
We all know movies are not only a great way to pass the time, have fun, and escape from our day-to-day concerns, but they’re also – if we’re lucky – a great way learn valuable life lessons, and, if you like, learn about what it’s like to live with a mental health disorder, or live with a family member with mental health disorder.
For people who don’t have a mental health disorder, films that touch on mental health can help them learn more about what people with mental health diagnoses face, and help them become more compassionate and understanding toward their friends or family members who do have a mental or behavioral health disorder.
For people with a mental health disorder, films about mental health can help them learn from the experiences of others. They can learn about the successes, the challenges, the power of human connection, the power of family, and the power of love. They can also learn about the importance of following a treatment plan.
We compiled a list of 12 films with mental health as a central theme. Each film offers a slightly different take on mental health. Some are comic, some border on tragic, and some are combination of the two. Some may include triggers. But don’t worry: we included trigger warnings, and, despite the potential triggers, all these films teach important lessons about mental health, and are worth watching. Extra note: please read our comments about triggers. Some films on this list have outdated and potentially stigmatizing content.
12 Films About Mental Health for a Holiday Watch Party
1. Inside Out / Inside Out 2
All we can say is this: watch “Inside Out and Inside Out 2″ now. Do not hesitate, do not pass go, don’t even make popcorn. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll hug your loved ones, you’ll want to hug the main character. These movies are not about mental illness: they’re about our emotions, our internal lives, and how our emotions, memories, and experiences all combine to inform our experience of the present. Animated by renowned Pixar Studios, prepare to literally go inside the mind of a preteen girl as she navigates a difficult, cross-country, family move in Part 1, and in Part 2, prepare for her to navigate the challenges of full-on adolescence. This may be one of the most heart-warming movies about topics related to emotions, adolescent development, and mental health ever made.
- Trigger Warnings/Possible triggers. Grab the Kleenex –includes depictions of preadolescent angst, humor, love, understanding, compassion, and an abundance of practical wisdom for the whole family.
2. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Based on the best-selling of the same name, this film tells the story of Charlie, an introverted high school student who changes schools and records his experiences by a writing journal-letters with the greeting “Dear Friend,” at the beginning of each one. The film follows Charlie as he experiences the suicide of a friend and unearths trauma from the past. In the end, the film is really about the impact of early trauma on emotional development during adolescence, and earned a cult following for its honesty and sense of humor.
- Trigger Warnings/Possible triggers. Shows adolescent drug use, sex, and repressed memories of sexual abuse.
3. Little Miss Sunshine
Think you come from a quirky family? You might. As quirky as the family in “Little Miss Sunshine”? That would be hard to top. This film is dark, funny, tragic, sad, uplifting, infuriating, and joyful – all at the same time. The plot: seven-year-old daughter Olive qualifies for the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant in California. The catch: the family lives in Albuquerque New Mexico. The solution becomes the plot: pile the entire family into a rickey old yellow Volkswagen Van and make it a road trip. Along the way, various circumstances and misadventures teach the family that with love, understanding, and support, they can live and thrive through any challenges.
- Trigger Warnings/Possible triggers. Depicts overdose and characters discuss suicide.
4. The Aviator
This film is about one of the most famous successful businessmen in the history of the U.S., Howard Hughes. The story chronicles the steady progression of his severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), which coincided with his many personal and professional accomplishments. Critics and audiences praised the film overall, and it offers an honest look at how OCD can impact and damage personal and professional relationships.
- Trigger Warnings/Possible triggers. Presents character with severe, escalating obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
5. The Soloist
Starring blockbuster Hollywood actors Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey, Jr., this film tells the story of a journalist (Downey, Jr.) who meets a musical genius (Foxx) who is homeless and has schizophrenia. Upon further investigation, the journalist learns the musician was a child prodigy who attended the renowned conservatory, Julliard, before developing schizophrenia and dropping out after two years. The story unfolds – with interesting, honest twists and turns – as Lopez (Downey) tries to help Ayers (Foxx) get off the street and get back into the music that was once the love of his life.
- Trigger Warnings/Possible triggers. Includes realistic portrayal of character with schizophrenia.
6. Welcome to Me
This comedy – and it is a funny film – tells the story of a woman with borderline personality disorder (BPD) living on disability benefits who wins the lottery – a jackpot worth 86 million dollars. In a scene emblematic of the humor in the film, Alice, the main character, appears on a local news show to talk about winning, but gets cut off when she discusses using masturbation as a sedative to address her BPD. She goes off her medication, moves into a casino in Las Vegas, and – as a huge Oprah fan – uses her new fortune to fund an autobiographical talk show, “Welcome to Me.” The plot revolves around her eventual return to treatment and medication after an eventful ride through various adventures and misadventures.
- Trigger Warnings/Possible triggers. Includes portrayal of a character with borderline personality disorder (BPD) who goes off her medication, which can be difficult to watch for anyone who knows someone with BPD who goes on and off medication.
7. Infinitely Polar Bear
Starring Mark Ruffalo and Zoe Saldana, this film is about a family doing their best to manage life with a father – played by Ruffalo – living with bipolar disorder (BD). The bulk of the film is about a period when the mother – Saldana – moves to New York from Boston for 18 months to get a graduate degree in business in order improve their financial situation, leaving Ruffalo at home to be a full-time dad to their two daughters. The plot unfolds as the family experiences ups and downs, but ultimately, mutual love, compassion, and support help them find some semblance of stability.
- Trigger Warnings/Possible triggers. Includes a realistic portrayal of a character with bipolar disorder (BD) who goes off and on medication, which can be difficult to watch for anyone who knows someone with BD who goes on and off medication.
8. Silver Linings Playbook
This film, starring Bradley Cooper, is about a man with bipolar disorder who spends 8 months in residential treatment before being discharged to live with his parents. He decides to go off his medication and attempts to see the silver linings in his thoughts and experiences, however atypical they may be. The plot follows the main character as he tries to win back his ex-wife, with the aid of new friend, a widow played by Jennier Lawrence. Through a series of misadventures – no spoilers – Cooper and Lawrence get closer, leading to a heartwarming – but not necessarily a surprise – ending.
- Trigger Warnings/Possible triggers. Includes a realistic portrayal of a character with bipolar disorder (BD) who goes off and on medication (see warning in bold above).
9. Girl, Interrupted
Known as one of the first mainstream, Hollywood movies to address mental health among women, this biographical film tells the story of a young woman who has a breakdown, overdoses on aspirin and vodka, and spends a year and a half in a mental institution. Critics didn’t love this movie. However, audiences enjoyed the cast of characters and the novel depictions of life in an institution. Overall, this movie is fun. But – set in the 1960s – it includes outdated concepts about mental health. Watch with a figurative grain of salt.
- Trigger Warnings/Possible triggers. Contains archaic, inaccurate, and stigmatizing concepts of mental health disorders and treatment. Includes characters depicting borderline personality disorder (BPD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), schizophrenia, eating disorders, and sociopathy.
10. A Beautiful Mind
Perhaps the most well-known movie on this list, “A Beautiful Mind” appeared not long after “Girl, Interrupted.” It offered a moving portrayal of a man – eventually a Nobel Prize-winning mathematician – experiencing escalating symptoms of schizophrenia, including severe and disruptive hallucinations and delusions. The story follows the main character, Nash – a real person whose story is the basis of the film – as he faces his mental health diagnosis, learns to manage it, and thrives. He wins the Nobel Prize years after his diagnosis, confirming that people with mental health challenges can succeed at the highest levels of human endeavor. As far as movies about mental health go, this is one of the best.
- Trigger Warnings/Possible triggers. Includes a realistic portrayal of a character living with the hallucinations, cognitive distortions, and delusions associated with schizophrenia.
11. Melancholia
This unique and creative film explores topics related to depression and anxiety. It follows the story of two sisters – Justine and Claire – as they grapple with the possible end of the earth (literally) because of the impending arrival of a rogue planet called Melancholia. The planet serves as an extended metaphor for mental health issues created by climate anxiety and dread for the future. How do humans behave when they know disaster is imminent? The film focuses on how depression and anxiety manifest in the two main characters. It examines how they behave when…well, we’ll leave that spoiler alone – and let you watch this film yourself. Note: Kirsten Dunst won a “Best Actress” award at the renowned Cannes Film Festival for her performance as Justine.
- Trigger Warnings/Possible triggers. While this is a well-made, well-acted, and well-directed film, it’s not a happy film. If you’re looking for a story tied up in a neat, positive, hopeful bow, look elsewhere. If you want serious, however, this is for you.
12. Anomalisa
This stop-motion animated film received wide praise from critics for its creativity and subject matter. The main character is sad, alienated, and depressed. So much so that everyone he sees – to him – appears to have the same face and the same voice. This actually describes a symptom of a mental health diagnosis of Fregoli Syndrome. A person with Fregoli Syndrome believes everyone in the world is actually the same person in disguise. In essence, the film is about midlife depression, with delusional characteristics. It offers the viewer a look into what it might be like to experience delusions of this sort, which most often occur in people with schizophrenia.
- Trigger Warnings/Possible triggers. Like Melancholia, this film does not tie up everything at the end in a cheery manner. Instead, we get a man returning home after an unsettling weekend trip, learning he must find new ways to manage his emotions and cope with the circumstance of his life. We have two notes/observations about this movie. First, the stop motion animation makes this film eerie. Second, there’s a startlingly realistic sex scene.
That’s our list!
Grab the popcorn, kick up your feet, and choose your film. Funny, serious, or a combination of the two – it’s all there in this list of high -quality movies about mental health.
