Posts Tagged ‘mental-illness’

Living and the Dead, The (2006)

Tuesday, July 1st, 2008
Genres: Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller
Countries: UK
Actors: Lloyd-Pack, Roger | Bill, Leo | Conrich, Neil
Directors:
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A descent into Hell is triggered when “Ex-Lord” Donald Brocklebank finds that he must leave Longleigh House for London to find a way to pay for the medical treatments for his wife Nancy. Alone, his over-protected, delusional, adult son, James, fancies himself in charge of the manor house with his terminally ill mother, and barricades the two of them into the house for a series of ever more panicked home treatments, mistakenly protecting her from the arrival of Nurse Mary and any outside help.

What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)

Wednesday, June 4th, 2008
Genres: Comedy | Drama | Romance
Countries: USA
Actors: Depp, Johnny | DiCaprio, Leonardo | Lewis, Juliette | Steenburgen, Mary | Cates, Darlene | Harrington, Laura | Schellhardt, Mary Kate | Tighe, Kevin | Reilly, John C. | Glover, Crispin | Branning, Penelope | Green, Tim | Loughran, Susan | Hedges, Robert B. | Jordan, Mark
Directors: Hallström, Lasse
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What’s Eating Gibert Grape is a beautifully shot movie of tenderness, caring and self-awareness that is set amongst the fictional working class one street town Endora. Centred around the Grape family Ellen and Amy and their two brothers Arnie and Gilbert, who, along with their morbidly obese widowed mother Bonnie Grape are striving to survive and coexist with the absence of a father figure, low wage work and seventeen-year-old Arnie’s severe mental condition. It is in this awkward and extremely one sided affair that the unfortunate Gilbert (Johnny Depp) has to constantly, while working for the town’s slowly dying Convenience Store, take care of his younger brother, played to such depth and conviction by a very young Leonardo DiCaprio. Gilbert’s life, his future, is thwarted he know this, but it is in this Guardian Angel that his love and bond for Arnie cannot, and will not, be let go. That is until the free spirit of Becky (Juliette Lewis) arrives in town, and with her grandmother are stranded for the week while waiting for parts for their vehicle. This realisation unties new feelings, new thoughts and new hope for the put upon Gibert, something new is eating Gilbert Grape.

Edmond (2005)

Thursday, May 29th, 2008
Genres: Drama | Thriller
Countries: USA
Actors: Macy, William H. | Bay, Frances | Pidgeon, Rebecca | Mantegna, Joe | Richards, Denise | Thompson, Wendy | Guastaferro, Vincent | Bai, Ling | Landers, Matt | Hill, Dulé | Hornsby, Russell | Hodge, Aldis | Mazar, Debi | Suvari, Mena | Combs, Jeffrey
Directors: Gordon, Stuart
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A man in a suit at a Manhattan firm leaves work on Friday; he looks unhappy. He stops at a fortune teller’s for a Tarot reading: “You are not where you belong,” she tells him. That evening he quits his marriage and walks the streets of New York, passing from a classy bar to a gentleman’s club, then to a high-class bordello, a mugging, a pawnshop, and a diner where someone does listen. He shares his insights with her and later with others. Violence, disappointment, and musings entwine as Edmond loses his moorings while believing he’s found them. Where does he belong?

Shine (1996)

Wednesday, May 14th, 2008
Genres: Biography | Drama | Music | Romance
Countries: Australia
Actors: Rush, Geoffrey | Braine, Justin | Todd, Sonia | Haywood, Chris | Rafalowicz, Alex | Poole, Gordon | Mueller-Stahl, Armin | Bell, Nicholas | Cox, Danielle | Gooden, Rebecca | Kaczmarek, Marta | Cousins, John | Taylor, Noah | Linkson, Paul | Berger, Randall
Directors: Hicks, Scott
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Based on the true story of Australian pianist David Helfgott, this delightful movie charts the early and traumatic early years. Telling the story in flashback we see David as he grows up and into a child prodigy while his father abuses him and his siblings with the memory of his childhood in Europe and the loss of his family in the concentration camps. David finally breaks away from his father and goes away to study overseas, he later suffers a breakdown and returns to Australia and a life in an institution. Many years later he is released and through several twists of fate (in reality even more unlikely than film portrays) he starts playing a piano in a bar before finally returning to the concert hall.

Deranged (1974)

Wednesday, May 14th, 2008
Genres: Horror | Thriller
Countries: Canada | USA
Actors: Blossom, Roberts | Lee, Cosette | Carlson, Leslie | Warner, Robert | Diamond, Marcia | Smeagle, Brian | Gillen, Arlene | McHeady, Robert | Waldman, Marian | Mather, Jack | Moore, Micki | Orr, Pat
Directors: Gillen, Jeff
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A man living in rural Wisconsin takes care of his bed-ridden mother, who is very domineering and teaches him that all women are evil. After she dies he misses her, so a year later he digs her up and takes her home. He learns about taxidermy and begins robbing graves to get materials to patch her up, and inevitably begins looking for fresher sources of materials. Based closely on the true story of Ed Gein.

Taxi Driver (1976)

Thursday, April 24th, 2008
Genres: Crime | Drama | Thriller
Countries: USA
Actors: De Niro, Robert | Shepherd, Cybill | Boyle, Peter | Foster, Jodie | Keitel, Harvey | Harris, Leonard | Brooks, Albert | Abbott, Diahnne | Adu, Frank | Ardito, Gino | Argo, Victor | Avery, Garth | Cohn, Harry | Cunningham, Copper | Dickson-Weinberg, Brenda
Directors: Scorsese, Martin
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Vietnam vet Travis Bickle is 26, a loner in the mean streets of New York City, slipping slowly into isolation and violent misanthropy. In solving his insomnia by driving a yellow cab on the night shift, he grows increasingly disgusted by the low-lifes that hang out at night: “Someday a real rain will come and wash all the scum off the streets.” His touching attempts to woo Betsy, a Senator’s campaign worker, turn sour when he takes her to a porn movie on their first date. He even fails in his attempt to persuade child prostitute Iris to desert her pimp and return to her parents and school. Driven to the edge by powerlessness, he buys four handguns and sets out to assassinate the Senator, heading for the infamy of a ‘lone crazed gunman’…

Cell, The (2000)

Wednesday, March 26th, 2008
Genres: Crime | Drama | Fantasy | Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller
Countries: Germany | USA
Actors: Lopez, Jennifer | Vaughn, Vince | D'Onofrio, Vincent | Weber, Jake | Baker, Dylan | Jean-Baptiste, Marianne | Bauchau, Patrick | Becker, Gerry | Subkoff, Tara | Sutherland, Catherine | Thomas, Jake | James, Colton | Norris, Dean | Cothran Jr., John | Conley, Jack
Directors: Singh, Tarsem
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Catharine Deane is a psychotherapist who is part of a revolutionary new treatment which allows her mind to literally enter the mind of her patients. Her experience in this method takes an unexpected turn when an FBI agent comes to ask for a desperate favour. They had just tracked down a notorious serial killer, Carl Stargher, whose MO is to abduct women one at a time and place them in a secret area where they are kept for about 40 hours until they are slowly drowned. Unfortunately, the killer has fallen into an irreversible coma which means he cannot confess where he has taken his latest victim before she dies. Now, Catherine Deane must race against time to explore the twisted mind of the killer to get the information she needs, but Stargher’s damaged personality poses dangers that threaten to overwhelm her.

Score, The (2001)

Wednesday, March 26th, 2008
Genres: Crime | Drama | Thriller
Countries: Germany | USA
Actors: De Niro, Robert | Norton, Edward | Brando, Marlon | Angela Bassett | Farmer, Gary | Harrold, Jamie | Oz, Frank
Directors:
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Nick Wells, a professional criminal, decides to leave the business for good, since he nearly got caught on his last job. His plan is to live in peace with his girl Diane, running his Montreal jazz club NYC. Soon Max, his good friend and financial partner in the illegal affairs, comes along with an offer Nick can’t refuse: A historical and priceless French sceptre has been discovered while being smuggled into the country. It is now under massive surveillance in the Montreal Customs House, and soon to be returned to France. Nick has to team up with Max’ man inside, the young, talented and aggressive thief Jackie Teller to get the precious item, and suffer no more financial problems ever. Only one question remains: Who will trick whom out of their share?

Don’t Look Now (1973)

Tuesday, February 26th, 2008
Genres: Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller
Countries: Italy | UK
Actors: Christie, Julie | Sutherland, Donald | Mason, Hilary | Matania, Clelia | Massimo Serato | Scarpa, Renato | Trestini, Giorgio | Trieste, Leopoldo | Tree, David | Rye, Ann | Salter, Nicholas | Williams, Sharon | Cattaneo, Bruno | Poerio, Adelina
Directors: Roeg, Nicolas
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John and Laura Baxter are living in Venice when they meet a pair of elderly sisters, one of whom claims to be psychic. She insists that she sees the spirit of the Baxters’ daughter, who recently drowned. Laura is intrigued, but John resists the idea. He, however, seems to have his own psychic flashes, seeing their daughter walk the streets in her red cloak, as well as Laura and the sisters on a funeral gondola.

Secretary (2002)

Thursday, February 7th, 2008
Genres: Comedy | Drama | Romance
Countries: USA
Actors: Davies, Jeremy | Gyllenhaal, Maggie | Spader, James | Warren, Lesley Ann | Bauchau, Patrick
Directors: Steven Shainberg
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Lee Holloway is a smart, quirky woman in her twenties who returns to her hometown in Florida after a brief stay in a mental hospital. In search of relief from herself and her oppressive childhood environment, she starts to date a nerdy friend from high school and takes a job as a secretary in a local law firm, soon developing an obsessive crush on her older boss, Mr. Grey. Through their increasingly bizarre relationship, Lee follows her deepest longings to the heights of masochism and finally to a place of self-affirmation.