Essay on Schizophrenia free essay sample

Both the movies â€Å"Proof† and â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† portray the symptoms of schizophrenia. â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† centers around the character of John Nash’s downward spiral from a genius to mentally disabled and the acting, setting and storyline of the movie. In my opinion, the storyline of the movie â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† was much better than â€Å"Proof†. Throughout the movie â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† we saw the signs of schizophrenia in John Nash from having hallucinations that included his roommate Charles, Charless niece Marcy, and government of defense supervisor William Parcher. His delusions led him to believe he was more than a professor, he believed he was a spy and could break codes by review of specific magazines and newspapers. Compared to â€Å"A Beautiful Mind†, â€Å"Proof† also shows signs of schizophrenia such as Catherine’s conversation with her dad as if he was physically present. But some scenes in the movie where Catherine woke up from the conversation with her dad making it seem like a dream and the idea of schizophrenia was destroyed at many points. We will write a custom essay sample on Essay on Schizophrenia or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Besides that, only a few types of schizophrenic diseases were expressed. In contrast, the plot of â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† shows the symptoms of schizophrenia better than â€Å"Proof†. Also the acting in â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† was well done by Russell Crowe even though it must have been a hard role. Russell Crowe’s performance as John Nash was exceptional, he was able to show the audience how difficult and how desperate John Nash was and how the symptoms were completely taking control of his life. His attitude changed from without seeming funny, he would go from an anxious mathematician to a loving and romantic boyfriend. Russell Crowe’s portrayal of John Nash allowed the audience to empathize with him and feel the pain he was going through. When compared to â€Å"Proof†, I felt that the characters didn’t portray the symptoms of schizophrenia very well. Catherine did not portray a young daughter’s role as well as I thought she should have. Anthony Hopkins who played Robert never truly showed an attitude of being unstable and throughout the movie he was calm no matter what situation he was in. Also, â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† won two academy awards while â€Å"Proof† had none. The settings in â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† were well chosen and for every scene there was a different location to explain the situation better to the audience. â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† had clear examples of what schizophrenic people see in normal compared to â€Å"Proof†. In â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† some of the settings proved to the audience that John Nash was in fact mentally unstable are the, private FBI headquarters The university they chose in â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† was an old and very impressive building. It showed the prestige of an Ivy League university which communicated to the audience how important John Nash was as a renowned student and professor. In â€Å"Proof† the setting was very basic; it didn’t contribute to the characters or the storyline as where in â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† it supported the storyline and added the credibility. The movie â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† portrayed the symptoms of schizophrenia better than the movie â€Å"Proof†; the acting, setting and the storyline of the movie communicated the downward spiral of John Nash which made the movie more effective and understandable. Both movies attempted to communicate the struggle of schizophrenia but â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† expanded more on the symptoms of schizophrenia. Tragically, these two math masters once had everything to live for until reality slipped away from them unintentionally and unwillingly. A Beautiful Mind gave a very descriptive and intellectual view on the affects of a mental illness. Through examples and situations it helped show circumstances that people must suffer with if they have schizophrenia or paranoia. A sense of hope was shown because Nash overcame his illness and with help many others can attain this outcome.