A Beautiful Mind: Film Review and Analysis

A Beautiful Movie

A dark-haired Jennifer Connelly peers into a white room with artificial lighting and a variety of hospital equipment. In the middle of the room, Russell Crowe is strapped to a hospital bed, wires and tubes hooked to various points of his body, tears spilling down his face. Then a man speaks, “Imagine if you suddenly learned that the people, the places, the moments most important to you were not gone, not dead, but worse, had never been. What kind of hell would that be?” (Grazer & Howard, 2001). This was the frightening reality for John and Alicia Nash in the movie A Beautiful Mind. The married couple had recently discovered a disturbing truth about the brilliant John Nash: much of his life had simply been an illusion because John suffered from paranoid schizophrenia.

John Forbes Nash, Jr., was a mathematical genius born in Bluefield, West Virginia, in 1928. His theories are widely known and used in multiple subjects. Among other things, Nash is known for the Nash equilibrium and Nash-Moser theorem. He married Alicia Larde Lopez-Harrison in 1957. Then in 1994, he was awarded the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. This is not to say his life was glamorous because it was quite the opposite. Nash’s life was troubled due to the unnerving reality of life with paranoid schizophrenia. He suffered from delusions, making him believe certain people were real, he was communicating with aliens, and deciphering Russian codes. However saddening his life may have been, Nash’s tale is one of great inspiration. In fact, Sylvia Nasar wrote a biography, detailing the life of John Forbes Nash, Jr. This book, in turn, inspired the film A Beautiful Mind.

Conflict

A Beautiful Mind belongs to the drama film genre, which tends to be based on a powerful, driving conflict. Often the major conflict in these movies pushes other minor issues onto the scene. In A Beautiful Mind, the prominent issue is Nash’s struggle with paranoid schizophrenia, which leads to smaller conflicts. For example, Nash’s difficult work in cracking Russian codes within newspapers and magazines was a direct result of his schizophrenia. This secret government job led to Nash believing dangerous people were hunting him. Eventually, this resulted in Alicia’s distrust and discomfort with her husband’s behavior. These small events, caused by schizophrenia, pushed the movie forward to the discovery of the truth. Following these incidents, other minor ramifications arrived, wreaking havoc in Nash’s world. He was eventually excluded from the academic world, left to search for redemption. John’s schizophrenia led to a majority of the problems in the film and is evidently the major conflict.

Casting

The actors are a vital component of any film. They make a significant difference in the audience’s reactions and the quality of the film itself. Russell Crowe was cast as John Nash. In every scene, Crowe makes it clear that Nash is reserved, focused, and not in tune with social cues. Sylvia Nasar (2011), author of Nash’s biography, noted that “[Nash was] described … as ‘aloof,’ ‘haughty,’ ‘without effect,’ ‘detached,’ ‘spooky,’ ‘isolated,’ and ‘queer’” by his peers (p. 13). Crowe was able to portray these attributes in his character throughout the entire film, and for that, he was nominated for the Best Actor award. Not only was Russell Crowe’s acting exceptional, but his co-star, Jennifer Connelly, performed remarkably as well.

After much debate and consideration, Connelly was cast as Alicia Nash, the woman who, despite Nash’s social shortcomings, falls in love with him. Connelly expertly portrayed the indescribable toll mental illnesses take on the family and loved ones of the affected. She demonstrated the wide range of emotions the spouse of a paranoid schizophrenic might experience. For her extraordinary work, she won the award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. Crowe and Connelly, along with their many co-stars, made a fundamental contribution to the incredible final result.

Accuracy

A Beautiful Mind is inspired by a true story, so there needs to be some accuracy in the retelling. However, like a Hollywood production, some dramatization is to be expected. Many say the movie was overdramatized and strayed far from the truth of Nash’s life. An article, written by Cynthia Rockwell (2002), said, “A Beautiful Mind is a thoroughly American film, a fantasy, a triumph of individualism over adversity. Ultimately the film is best viewed, as its makers have contended, as a spectacle inspired by, but not loyal to, the life of John Nash or his biography” (p. 36). The film did not include the details about John and Alicia’s divorce, then remarriage later in life; however, these points were excluded to maintain the Hollywood sense of romantic and undying love. While a variety of details from Nash’s life, were modified or not included, many details remained truthful.

One of the film’s more truthful components was its portrayal of paranoid schizophrenia. In one movie review included in the Mental Health Clinician, the authors reveal, “While the movie takes a few dramatic liberties with its depiction of schizophrenia, it also provides a fairly accurate portrayal of the disease” (Thacker & Hughes, 2013, p. 246-247). The major inaccurate piece of schizophrenia shown in the film comes from the hallucinations Nash experiences. People suffering from schizophrenia do not normally experience visual hallucinations, rather they have auditory hallucinations. In other words, they do not usually see people, but hear voices. The film takes this dramatic approach to add to the overall experience for the viewer, otherwise, the movie is fairly accurate.

Judgment

Although some may say the movie is completely inaccurate and motivated by Hollywood ideals, A Beautiful Mind is truly a beautiful movie. The story of John Nash is portrayed by talented actors that present so much emotion, like that demonstrated in the scene mentioned earlier. Nash had just learned that some of his memories were imagined and Alicia discovered her husband was burdened with a debilitating illness. In watching this particular scene, the viewer can feel what John and Alicia feel, they do not just see it. Similarly, the acting in other scenes throughout the film brings the story to life for the viewers. The conflict within the story is real and tangible. The ramifications of Nash’s mental illness affect other characters and drives the story. While some pieces of the real story may be missing, the tale still reaches the hearts of the audience. The movie is dramatized to a certain level, but that does not seem to take away from the experience. The viewer can still connect on a personal level and come to understand the pain mental illnesses can cause.

Through the film, thousands of people have the opportunity to witness a piece of John Nash’s life story, one that has touched the lives of many others. Nasar (2011) noted multiple stories that have reached her over the years, like giving hope to a homeless man diagnosed with the same illness and showing young people they can accomplish great things (2011, p. 8-10). A Beautiful Mind is a movie that fits the bill of the drama genre, with genius and conspiracy, mental health issues, and enduring love.

References

1. Grazer, B. (Producer), & Howard, R. (Director). (2001). A Beautiful Mind [Motion Picture]. United States: Imagine Entertainment.
2. Nasar, S. (2011). A Beautiful Mind. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Paperbacks
3. Rockwell, C. (2002). A Beautiful Mind (Film). Cineaste, 27(3), 36. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=asn&AN=7035635&site=ehost-live
4. Thacker, M. & Hughes, C. (2013). Movie Review: A Beautiful Mind. Mental Health Clinician. 2(8), 246-247 https://doi.org/10.9740/mhc.n132978