Ptsd Theatre - Movies, Tv, Books, Etc.

[LC23]

War movies frequently have PTSD storylines. The first one that comes to mind, more because it's one of my favorites than the PTSD content, is Band of Brothers, like BSG, there's several characters who experience it (or something like it) at different points: Albert Blythe, Buck Compton, and Lewis Nixon.

 

[LC23]

Whew. Almost done watching the Horse Whisperer, which has a doozy of a PTSD thread portrayed with uncanny emotional depth by a very young Scarlett Johnannson, who I now have mad respect for. Difficult at the trauma scene and the PTSD confessional scene. I like the emphasis on the direct, friendly physical contact of the horse interactions. Not sure why I took so long to see this movie but in a way I'm glad I did. It's a heavy movie, and it takes some attention, not to mention a big box of Kleenex.

 

[LC23]

Robocop totally has PTSD including nightmares and waking flashbacks of the traumatic event.

 

[Hashi]

Regeneration (book and film), about the first world war poets and shellshock.

*spoiler*

They're treated by a psychiatrist who's in some ways sympathetic and enlightened, but who has to live with the fact that he's only getting them better enough to send them back to combat.

For me, it's a story about waste and pointlessness. Not just of war, or of trying to heal in order to go back to it, but - in Siegried Sassoon's case - the pointlessness of his previous, privileged life and how being in the war was the making of him as well as the breaking.

I found both book and film hauntingly beautiful and true. Particularly when one poet (Wilfred Owen, I think) keeps waking up in hospital in the middle of the night to "see" his fallen comrades standing at the foot of his bed watching him.

 

[SweetPeaandSunBird]

"I have been compiling a list of things that I call 'PTSD Theatre'. PTSD THreate is some form of narrative - could be movies, TV, books, or actual theatre - that delves deeply into the mind of a trauma survivor that experiences either PTS or PTSD as part of their character development.

I find that as a supplement to conceptual understanding about PTSD or case studies of PTSD sufferers, these kinds of narratives can show (instead of tell) an example of how this experience affects someone and the choices they make and the different reactions they have compared to someone who doesn't have the same sensitivities."

Oh, LC23, what a brilliant and helpful idea!!!!! I will definitely be popping in and out on this topic.

*possible trigger image below*

There's a great short story by Isabel Allende, but I'll have to get back to you on the title of it. I use it in a class in conjunction with a checklist about behaviors that PTSDers have affecting their ability to have intimacy with their companions. The checklist is formatted for victims of childhood sexual abuse, but Allende's short story is about two torture camp survivors (who suffered multiple rapes and torture techniques often targeting the genitals of both male and female victims) during a South American dictatorship.

When I get a chance, I'll post the title.

Thanks so much for sharing this idea with us. Brilliant! Did I say, "Brilliant"! :):bookworm::)

 

[LC23]

I'm SO glad you like it SweetPea. There's so many misunderstandings about how PTSD works, I'm always very impressed when someone gets it right.

I think it's a good way for us as PTSD survivors to identify and make sense of things that can seem frightening and mysterious and paradoxical, and watching movies is for many of us something we can all do either by ourselves or with a supportive loved one. So that if it triggers some feelings or memories we are still in a relatively safe place, with no real danger. It's VERY important for people with deep emotional issues to be able to unpack those issues and look at them. Perhaps there are extreme cases where insted the goal is to wall off those issues so as to not provoke a reaction. But for most of us I think this can be one of our core tools

It can also be a way for non-PTS/PTSD people to understand what that experience is like, without having to acquire PTSD themselves.

 

[Privateer]

My wife has described my symptoms as being a little like those shown by Watson in Sherlock, particularly in regard to their mysterious absence in highly stressful situations such as those encountered at my workplace.

My friends have described me as being more like Murdoch from the A-Team, but they've been saying that for years anyway... :wacky:

 

[Zef]

LC23,
Thanks for breaking down Alien/Aliens the way you did. Those movies have always had a fascination for me and I think you have explained why in your OP. We actually named one of our kids Ripley. :)

The Fisher King is amazing. Both major characters experience a severely traumatic event and the movie is a pretty symbolic story about the characters meeting and 'questing' through the symptoms of their trauma. I identify closely with both characters. The moment when Jeff Bridges' character is traumatized gives me deep chills every time and I consider it one of most perfect moments of acting ever caught on film.

 

[LC23]

I watched the Fisher King a long time ago, but don't remember it. I was actually meaning to watch it again after it was mentioned by a friend just a couple days ago, so it's interesting that you mention it.

 

[Orglethorp]

Yeah, The Fisher King definitely came to mind when I read the subject line for this thread.

A few others:

-Triggers (Sci/Fi novel by Robert. J. Sawyer) A soldier being treated for PTSD at the same hospital that the president of the USA is taken to after an assassination attempt, along with the president who has just been shot, are two main characters. To give an idea of what its about without spoiling the story, consider what would happen if you were suddenly able to experience someone else's memories?

-The Dirty Streets of Heaven (fantasy novel by Tad Williams) the character Caz either had PTSD, or pretends to. Can't really be sure which, because she's a demon, and she's revealing this to an angel.

-V for Vendetta (movie) This really needs no explanation for those who've seen it, and those who haven't, well, I won't spoil it.

-Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (movie, Tim Burton/Johnny Depp version) Given that part of why Wonka is so disturbing to many of the adult characters is because he has flashbacks and dissociates.

-Inception (movie) The character Molly represents the roll PTSD plays in this film.

-i, Robot (movie) although this may be more of a Suvivor's Guilt kind of thing

-Stick It (movie) it's been so long since I've seen this movie that I can't remember any character names, but sexual advances by the girl's gymnastics coach are the reason she botched World's, abruptly quit the sport, and turned to life as a tomboy hooligan getting in trouble with the law.

-Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (movie) Not about PTSD so to speak, but rather about what would happen if you could undergo a procedure to forget a past lover or event, and what might happen if that person then tried to make you remember all over again.

-The Men Who Stare at Goats (movie) I think Ewan McGregor's character is the only main character who doesn't have a disorder by the end of it...

-Charlie St. Cloud (book/movie) I think it's open to interpretation, but if you go with the "the ghost was never there" route, then I'd definitely say it falls into this category.

-Gladiator (movie) referring of course to Maximus

-The Hunger Games (books and film) So many characters! It's true of Katniss and Haymitch from the very beginning, though.

 

[Zef]

Orglethorp,
Great list. Thank You.

 

[SweetPeaandSunBird]

Sleepers and Girl, Interrupted (childhood sexual abuse, especially in Sleepers and a couple of characters in Girl, Interrupted