Fifteen famous movies about depression you shouldn't lose

Disunderstanding over it also contributes to the deterioration of symptoms such as despair and feelings of loneliness. Often, those around the depressed person have a wrong view of this mental disorder because they feel that it is a problem of character that can be overcome simply by force of will, writes the book. Psychology Spot.

This problem certainly affects not only the depressed person but also those who love him and share his day. Sometimes, though, as much as we read about depression, we cannot really understand how the person feels. Fortunately, there are excellent movies about depression that can help us to settle in another country and have a more realistic outlook on the disorder.

Movies about depression that well reflect this problem:

1. Official people (1980)

Directed by Robert Reford, this psychological film won four awards, Oscar's and several others, the Gladen Globes. We warn you this is a long movie, but it's worth watching for the last minute. He relates the life of a typical middle - class family with two children. When one of them dies in an accident, the other experiences a sense of anxiety that leads to deep depression and suicide attempts.

From this point on, a movie begins showing a young man who has been torn apart amid his mother's extreme indifference (rebuked by the survival of his favorite son) and his father's false joy. Especially interesting are the dialogues between parents (Donald Sutherland and Mary Tyler Moore) as they tell us how certain beliefs and behaviors can exacerbate the depression of a loved one.

2. The Hours (2002)

It's history over a day, of three women belonging to different ages, but they're connected through a Virginia Wolff novel. Especially interesting is the story brought to life by Julianne Moore, a classic woman of the '60s with a man and a boy who is supposed to lead an ideal but not satisfactory life that makes her a suicide attempt.

Nor can we forget a completely unaware Nicole Kidman interpreting writer Virginia Wolff, who suffered a bipolar disorder. The relationship with her husband tells us how at times, in trying to help and with the best of intentions, family members worsen the behavior of disorder as if the other person had no voice or vote to make decisions for his life.

Finally, Meryl Streep leads us through her friendship with a Ed Harris who suffers from AIDS in a very advanced phase and has decided to deprive himself of life.

3. Prozac Nation (2001)

It's an adaptation of the Faithfulseller with the same name written by Elizabeth Lee Wurtzel, where American writer and journalist relate to her passage through major depression. With Christina Riccin in the leading role, they warn you that you cannot expect an excellent job by speaking cinematographically, but the film is very interesting to understand the conflicts suffered by a depressed person and the problems those close to him, like his mother (the role played by Jessica Lange).

In this film we can appreciate the sense of a lack of control over the emotions that people with depression lived through, and their fruitless struggle to get out of this situation - a daily war that becomes depleting. It is also interesting the way the protagonist climbs into outer objects (such as the man is) in the hope that it is her salvation, as well as the constant reactions she suffers, which show a less sweetened and real vision of depression.

4. About Schmidt (2002)

This movie, starring Jack Nicholson, relates the life of an old man who just retired. After living for the company, he feels completely lost and displaced without his job. To make things worse, his wife suddenly dies leaving him alone. Nicholson seeks support on his daughter, but he realizes soon that he has no place in her plans.

Despite other movies where sadness feels at home, in this time of pain they join up with sarcastic comments and even charming ones, so after all, the film tastes good. It is an excellent tool to understand depression caused by loss, old age, and loneliness.

5. The beer (2011)

Directed and interpreted by Jody Foster, the film tells the story of a family man (Mel Gibson) who leads a company on the brink of bankruptcy. Gibson suffers a deep depression that affects his family relationship and puts him on the brink of divorce. After some suicide attempts, it is in a state much like a dissemination disorder. Basically, he begins speaking through a beaver doll, so that he finds the strength to make all the necessary changes in his life. However, when he cannot speak through the doll, depression returns.

Of course, from a purely psychological point of view, Jody Foster took some recording licenses, but the interesting thing about this film is the relationships that are placed within the family and the dialogue that Gibbson holds with himself.

6. Revolutionary Road (2008)

It's the portrait of a young couple looking into Frank's eyes (Leonardo DiCaprio) and April Wheeler. History takes place in the years of '50s, but the truth is that the issues they deal with are very current. Kate Winslet is a young woman with a lot of energy and dreams, but DiCaprio prefers to bet in a safe way and, in short, is undermining the desire to live.

Although they have a beautiful home and a beautiful family, the daily routine, the inability to realize her dreams, the fact of being locked up in a role she never wanted and her husband's insensible, leads Winslet to deep depression.

7. A single man (2009)

The event occurs in the 1960 ' s in southern California, the film concerns a university professor who is gay who must face the sudden death of his partner, who had shared nearly 20 years of his life with him. The film begins on the day that Colin Firth, who is a protagonist, decides to commit suicide.

The interesting thing about this movie about depression is the dialogue Firth holds with himself that allows us to see the way in which desperate people tend to see the world, always if the glass was half empty. Finally, too melodramatic for the taste of the public, contrary to what you might assume, is a real idea of life and taking advantage of every moment.

8. Helen (2009)

It is perhaps one of the movies about depression that best captures this mental disorder and its impact on a person's life. Ashley Juddd is a music teacher and an excellent pianist who, apparently, has everything. However, depression is gradually consuming it. There has been no cause, it cannot find a specific reason, and it worries him even more.

Ashley Juddd tries to fight those feelings, getting closer to her husband, her daughter and students, but she doesn't succeed and, with every frustrated effort, the distance between her and the world deepens. In fact, there are times when the protagonist, rather than sympathy, generates antipathy in the viewer, but this is the sad reality that depressed people usually live daily.

This is a movie about depression that represents what might be considered a <x0rst manual”, so it shows a very reliable picture of what people feel in depression. After a suicide attempt, Ashley Juddd was admitted to the hospital for treatment.

9. An angel at my table (1990)

This New Zealand movie is long, but it's worth every minute. Directed by Jane Champion, the film relates the life of writer Janet Frame, who was born into a poor and multimember family. Her childhood was marked by various tragedies and very soon Frame (played by Kerry Fox) began to feel different from others.

Thanks to a scholarship, she studied the teaching process, but during her stay at the university, she attempted suicide and was exiled for eight years to a psychiatric institution. There she was diagnosed with schizophrenic and suffered as much as 200 electrolytes. She was about to submit to a lobotomy, but was saved by the literary prize she won for her first book. Frame left the psychiatric hospital and kept writing until she had a brilliant literary career, but depression - what she really suffered - did not abandon her.

It is noteworthy that being a film of the writer's life, Jane Champion does not focus too much on depressive symptoms but raises a very interesting social view of depression, which makes us understand the environmental impact of presenting this pathology.

10. Sylvia (2003)

The movie shows the last five years of Sylvia Plath's life. In the lead, we find a Gwyneth Paltrow that cannot completely draw us into the anxiety that the poet lived but still, the film is a great example of emotions faced by a depressed person, her constant struggle for life while she feels like something is dragging her into a black hole.

Sylvia Plath, who committed suicide when she was only 31 years old, had already made another suicide attempt in her teen years. The movie tells us a woman who falls prey to anxiety, the victim of ghosts she had created herself, unhappy with the life she led and blocked in a strong emotional dependence on her husband, Ted Hughes, who is responsible for suicide.

11. Cake (2014)

This movie about depression directed by Daniel Barnes, where Jennifer Aniston interprets, appears on the darkest turns of this mental disorder. It is a complex story that contains many messages, so it is at risk of being inhabited by the inexperienced eye.

Her protagonist, Claire Bennett, is going through a very complex phase of her life because she not only suffers from severe depression but also chronic pain as a result of an accident in which her son died, which brings sad memories. In addition, it's her visions of a girl from his group supporting chronic pain she committed suicide. Claire starts caressing the idea of suicide, but then that same girl helps her realize her reality through those visions.

The film also deals with the issue of drugs for depression and pain, as well as its mild nature, ease of pain at the right time, but causing ever more serious resistance.

Twelve. The Skeleton Twins (2014)

This dramatic comedy addresses depression from a easier perspective, but no less deep. Exploring the vital tragedy of the twins through humor and a touch of mildness. Milo, played by Bill Hader, writes a suicide note and cuts his veins, while his sister Maggie, played by Christen Wiig, is in the bathroom preparing to swallow a large number of pills, but a call from a hospital to inform him that his brother has tried to kill himself makes him abort her plan.

When they go to live together, the ghosts of the past come to light as each of them throws out reasons that have led them to depression and suicide. Some consider that this movie about depression seems to link scenes without a common thread, but in reality the story has to do with the complexity of protagonists and this disorder, with dialogue as sharp as sincere. These brothers show originality, becoming imperfect and self-destructive, but with which we can easily empathize because of their vulnerability.

13. Interiors (1978)

Directed by Woody Allen, this is not only a great movie about depression, but also about introspection and conflict being in their infectious relationships. The film is very helpful, opposing internal and external spaces. With Diane Keaton's performances, Geraldine Page, Christine Griffith, the film speaks of three sisters living with a mother who is facing a difficult situation after a divorce.

Eve, played by Geraldie Page, is a unstable mental interior decorator who suffers from severe depression. After receiving the news of divorce, she tries to commit suicide. It all gets even more complicated and brings up deep emotions when a father comes home to the woman he intends to marry.

14. Melancholia (2011)

By script and directed by Lars von Trier, the film is a drama of elements of scientific fiction developed in a context of uncertainty, anxiety and destruction that many people can identify with, even though the director uses an apocalypse subject. Divided in sections or chapters, like most of the late Trier movies, the first half is dedicated to the depressed and unstable Justina, played by Christen Dunst on her wedding day, and the second half shows her sister Claire's perspective, played by Charlotte Gainsbourg.

This film is inspired by its director's depression, as well as by its observation that depressive persons, who are often apathy and lethargic, can remain calm even in catastrophic situations, such as an apocalypse. In fact, as the end of the world approaches, Claire becomes more and more anxious and fearful, but Justine calms down, relieved by the hope that this destruction will forever silence voices in her head.

15. It's a wonderful life (1946)

It's one of the classics for depression, directed by Frank Capra and performing James Stewart in the role of George Bailey, a self-reproaching man who sacrificed all his dreams to help the needy. However, his long list of unselfish acts has not produced the happiness he expected, rather, he feels lonely and depressed, so he tries to commit suicide.

The film is held through a series of rearmen, it starts with the third act that George is shown, which is about to be thrown off a bridge. In any case, his prayers eventually reach heaven, and he has been assigned an angel, Clara Odd, to save him. To achieve this, Claire must see George's entire life. Through these memories we discover the root of his depression.