Angeles University Foundation

College of Nursing

MOVIE ANALYSIS

A BEAUTIFUL
MIND””

SUBMITTED BY:

ROLAN A. NUQUI
GROUP 36

SUBMITTED TO:
 ARLISS KRIS S. SALAS, RN, MN
SUMMARY

Biopic of the famed mathematician John Nash and his lifelong struggles
with his mental health. Nash enrolled as a graduate student at
Princeton in 1948 and almost immediately stood out as an odd duck.
He devoted himself to finding something unique, a mathematical
theorem that would be completely original. He kept to himself for the
most part and while he went out for drinks with other students, he
spends a lot of time with his roommate, Charles, who eventually
becomes his best friend. John is soon a professor at MIT where he
meets and eventually married a graduate student, Alicia. Over time
however John begins to lose his grip on reality, eventually being
institutionalized diagnosed with schizophrenia. As the depths of his
imaginary world are revealed, Nash withdraws from society and it's not
until the 1970s that he makes his first foray back into the world of
academics, gradually returning to research and teaching. In 1994, John
Nash was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics.

DIAGNOSIS

Schizophrenia is the most severe and debilitating mental illness, and it

has long been the focus of medical, scientific, and societal attention. It
is associated with a chronic, severe, and disabling brain disorder that
has been recognized throughout recorded history.

DESCRIPTION

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder often characterized by abnormal

thinking, hallucinations, delusions, and social withdrawal. In the
paranoid form of schizophrenia, the affected person believes that they
are being persecuted. Although the word schizophrenia comes from
two Greeks words, schizein meaning "to split" and phren meaning
"mind", schizophrenia is NOT a form of split personality, as it is
popularly believed. The cause(s) of schizophrenia are not yet fully
known. Some forms of schizophrenia appear to have a genetic basis,
and increased amounts of dopamine in the brains of schizophrenic
individuals has also been documented. Modern treatment involves a
combination of antipsychotic medications and psychotherapy. "Shock"
therapy may still be used in emergency situations or for severe
depression.

POTRAYS OF DISORDER
He exhibits many of the symptoms characteristic to paranoid
schizophrenia, especially social withdrawal, a unique movement (his
walk), a flat emotional response, and of course, the telltale delusions.

MANIFESTATION (SCENE)

Throughout the movie it is evident that Nash is socially withdrawn; he

is rarely in the company of others, and when he is, he feels very
awkward. In the scene where he attends a party with Alicia, Nash
speaks with her, but spends more time inspecting paintings and
thinking to himself than he does speaking to the others in attendance;
in fact, Nash only speaks to the others at the party when they initiate
the conversation, and even then, Nash is very terse in his replies. This
leads into Nash's flat emotional response, evident throughout the film
due to the brilliant portrayal by Russell Crowe. One thing that is
noticed while watching A Beautiful Mind is the lack of inflection in
Nash's voice. Though Nash does not speak in a complete monotone,
his voice is very emotionally flat, as is his face. Except in his deepest
moments of realization that his disease is hurting those closest to him,
and his horror in the car chase, Nash's face and voice reflects little or
no emotion; it is impossible to determine his exact mood when he
speaks, and most of the hints as to his intentions are picked up based
on how the other characters respond to what he says. Though a
relatively small part of the film, Nash has a very unique, limping,
hunched-over gait, which is a characteristic of schizophrenia: the
unique style of movement. This walk becomes more evident as Nash
ages, perhaps suggesting the further onset of the disease, as he grows
older. This comes into play later, when several students at Princeton
mock the way Nash walks. To them, this mathematical genius is little
more than the local crazy with a funny walk. Finally, and most
obviously, are Nash's delusions. Nash sees and hears three distinct
characters: Charles, his niece, and the Department of Defense agent.
These hallucinations are very real to Nash, so real that the viewer
understands them to be real people until Alicia proves to Nash that
these people, of who he has such strong memories, are nothing more
than figments of his own overactive mind. It is worth noting the
brilliance in how vivid the delusions are, from the friendship between
Nash and Charles to the dealings between Nash and the government
agent. These interactions are so well conceived that the viewer almost
gets a slight sense of what it is like to be schizophrenic; it is just as
surprising to the viewer as it is to Nash when the discovery that these
people are hallucinations is made. Due to the vividness and reality of
these hallucinations, as well as Russell Crowe's fantastic portrayal of
John Nash's unique personality.

TREATMENT (SCENE)
Part of Nash's treatment for his schizophrenia included a course of
"shock" therapy, five times a week for 10 weeks. Suffice to say that, in
the early part of the 20th century, it was noted that epileptics who
suffered from convulsions rarely suffered from schizophrenia. The
thought was that the convulsions were protective. Consequently, many
forms of inducing convulsions were tried, e.g., with insulin (as in Nash's
case), but electroconvulsive therapy appeared to be the safest and
most controllable way to induce convulsions, and the results were
often dramatic.

Nash is given powerful antipsychotic drugs, and Russell Crowe expertly

portrays the nasty side effects: he somehow makes the already
withdrawn John Nash even more distant from others while he is on his
medicine. Like many schizophrenics, Nash dislikes his medicine, and
Nash even shows what happens when these pills are not taken: a
complete relapse, as shown when Alicia enters the shed and discovers
that Nash is back to deciphering the "hidden Soviet codes."

REACTION AND CONCLUSION

This film made me think about how people have a tenancy to convince
themselves of truths in order to quell their own remorse, guilt, or
others negative feelings. Although it was a somewhat different
situation with Nash (his delusions were so realistic they had to be
true), it is still the same basic principle. I have betrayed what I know to
be right on occasion, and as a human tendency I tried to convince
myself that what I had done was not really bad, or some other story in
order to deal with my own conscience. Although I am usually able to
see through such self-lies, the soothing of your conscience is a very
powerful offer. I believe that the appropriate response to this self-
cheating is to sit back and evaluate the situation you are in to see why
you are betraying your own sense of right and wrong. Judge the
situation to make sure you don't go too far past your own code of
ethics, and make sure the prize is worth the effort. If I had followed
that suggestion during the various times I have cheated myself, there
would be no guilt to my actions as I would have though them out fully
and clearly at the time.
 Angeles University Foundation
College of Nursing

MOVIE ANALYSIS

A BEAUTIFUL
MIND””
 SUBMITTED BY:

RAFAEL LUIS D. FIGUEROA

GROUP 36

SUBMITTED TO:

ARLISS KRIS S. SALAS, RN, MN

I. Summary

A biopic of the meteoric rise of John Forbes Nash Jr., a math prodigy
able to solve problems that baffled the greatest of minds. And how he
overcame years of suffering through schizophrenia to win the Nobel
Prize. Written by Anonymous

From the heights of notoriety to the depths of depravity, John Forbes

Nash, Jr. experienced it all. A mathematical genius, he made an
astonishing discovery early in his career and stood on the brink of
international acclaim. But the handsome and arrogant Nash soon found
himself on a painful and harrowing journey of self-discovery. After
many years of struggle, he eventually triumphed over his tragedy, and
finally - late in life - received the Nobel Prize. Written by Universal
Pictures and DreamWorks Pictures

At Princeton University, John Nash struggles to make a worthwhile

contribution to serve as his legacy to the world of mathematics. He
finally makes a revolutionary breakthrough that will eventually earn
him the Nobel Prize. After graduate school he turns to teaching,
becoming romantically involved with his student Alicia. Meanwhile the
government asks his help with breaking Soviet codes, which soon gets
him involved in a terrifying conspiracy plot. Nash grows more and more
paranoid until a discovery that turns his entire world upside down. Now
it is only with Alicia's help that he will be able to recover his mental
strength and regain his status as the great mathematician we know
him as today. Written by rmlohner

John Nash goes through a myriad of highs and lows from his time as a
Mathematics student in graduate school at Princeton in the late 1940's
to his Nobel Prize win for Economics in 1994. A brilliant but somewhat
arrogant and antisocial man, Nash preferred to spend his time with his
thoughts, which were primarily of seeing mathematical formula
associated with everyday occurrences, than with people. Two people
he did make a connection with were Charles, his roommate at
Princeton, and Alicia Larde, one of his students when he was teaching
at M.I.T. in the early 1950's. He and Alicia eventually marry. As time
goes on, Nash lives more and more within himself which causes major
problems in his life. But Alicia stands by her husband to his redemption
to the Nobel Prize win. Nash learns that his graduate school colleagues,
with whom he had a cordial but somewhat distant relationship, are
closer friends than he imagined, although in his later life he really does
miss Charles' company more than anything despite knowing that
spending time with Charles is not in his or anyone's best interest.

II. Schizophrenia

A. Brief Discussion

This disorder, at some point in the illness, involves a psychotic phase

(with delusions, hallucinations, or grossly bizarre/disorganized speech
and behavior). This psychotic phase must last for at least one month
(or less if successfully treated). Schizophrenia also causes impairment
in social or vocational functioning which must last for at least 6
months. The psychotic phase is not due to a medical condition,
medication, or illegal drug.

B. Discuss How the Disorder was Portrait

Individuals with this disorder may develop significant loss of interest or

pleasure. Likewise, some may develop mood abnormalities (e.g.,
inappropriate smiling, laughing, or silly facial expressions; depression,
anxiety or anger). Often there is day-night reversal (i.e., staying up late
at night and then sleeping late into the day). The individual may show
a lack of interest in eating or may refuse food as a consequence of
delusional beliefs. Often movement is abnormal (e.g., pacing, rocking,
or apathetic immobility). Frequently there are significant cognitive
impairments (e.g., poor concentration, poor memory, and impaired
problem-solving ability). The majority of individuals with Schizophrenia
are unaware that they have a psychotic illness. This poor insight is
neurologically caused by illness, rather than simply being a coping
behavior. This is comparable to the lack of awareness of neurological
deficits seen in stroke. This poor insight predisposes the individual to
noncompliance with treatment and has been found to be predictive of
higher relapse rates, increased number of involuntary hospitalizations,
poorer functioning, and a poorer course of illness. Depersonalization,
derealization, and somatic concerns may occur and sometimes reach
delusional proportions. Motor abnormalities (e.g., grimacing, posturing,
odd mannerisms, ritualistic or stereotyped behavior) are sometimes
present.

C. Identify Specific Scene for Manifestations

When there is someone ordering him to deliver the message in som

private place which is really not tru in the first place. He is aswell
talking to his "BESTFRIEND" and his bestfriend's niece. He sees and
interacts with things that are not there and becomes really afraid of
these things. He feels like he is being tracked with a tracking device
and even cuts his harm open to try to find it.

D. Identify Specific Scene for Treatment

The doctor is always stressing to the patient that, not taking the drug
as prescribed will just make the disease more severe and
Schizophrenia is irreversible according to the doctor. But Nash still
tried to fight the said irreversible disease.

III. Reaction and Conclusion

After watching the movie A Beautiful Mind with Russell Crowe as John
Nash, my views on mental illness have greatly changed. I thought that
in general the movie was awesome and it was a great movie to watch
in class. I actually got to enjoy the movie instead of trying to examine
every scene like I usually have to do in other classes when we watch a
movie. John Nash was an amazing man and he had a huge positive
impact on the American public.

I have learned a good deal about mental illness after watching this
movie. When I think of someone with a mental illness I usually think of
some guy in a mental institution in a straight jacket. This movie
showed me that mentally ill people can lead very productive and
happy lives. Although he had his hard times, with medication and
treatment he was able to overcome his illness and have a decently
normal life. I also learned that people with mental illnesses can’t help
that they are insane. It is something they are born with. Mentally ill
people are some of the world’s most indeed need our help. So let us do
our best to help them fight their irreversible disease.