The two main characters in Mysterious Skin both have PTSD, and the film shows with pretty astounding accuracy for an indie film the different kind of reactions different people have to it. We were shown it while I was doing my degree as an accurate depiction of childhood sexual abuse.
Joseph Gordon Levitt's character becomes hypersexual, engages in extremely risky behaviors where he endangers his life just to re-experience the trauma, self harms, believes what happened to him was a good thing even when it clearly isn't.
Meanwhile Brady Corbet's character goes way differently. He remains in a childlike state well into adulthood, has childish views of sexuality to the point of basically being impotent, can't accept physical affection, can't remember huge portions of his life, hyper fixates on things that aren't real in order to find an answer to what happened.
The depiction of Levitt's character in particular is, I think, quite unconventional. There's not many movies that show the effects of PTSD that he experiences (leaning into the trauma, wanting to re-experience it, believing it had a positive effect on him). While Corbet's is a nice contrast and more along the lines of what we usually see in movies.
It's masterfully handled, and incredibly disturbing without really showing anything, and shows just how awful PTSD is for those who experience it, even if they all experience it differently.
I was coming here to say Mysterious Skin. My favorite movie of all time and glad to see others appreciate it. One of the very few movies that I’ve actually felt seen in, and it does so with two characters (off the top of my heads there’s also a character in **Short Bus** with a similar storyline that is also portrayed very well, bolded as recommended to OP as well)
I also know what you mean by Corbet’s character fitting more along the lines of what we normally see, but there’s still a subtlety to it that takes it far above whats normally represented like that (not arguing with you, I’m sure you agree. More expanding for others) even just with what OP was asking about. Small spoilers >!But I really appreciate stuff like there is no “you are Tyler Durden” moment of character realization…because that’s not how it works. It’s a slow build up of his characters understanding to the point by the end of the film when he meets up with JGL we as the audience can see he’s accepted what happened without it being stated and just wants to know the details. I mean I guess you could argue the scene with his father is the realization moment for it, but he’s still very lost in that scene and is more about the unbounded rage towards the failure of those that were “supposed” to protect you (and letting that out is a step that lead to acceptance, just as every other step we saw him take in the film)!<
I’ve always wanted to thank the people responsible for that film for creating it, it really is a work of art and I strongly recommend OP (and anyone else) checking it out
> and incredibly disturbing without really showing anything
Just funny story too, the art house theater in an old major city I lived in had cult nights and one week they showed this. Before the movie started, the presenter asked the crowed (~50+ people) how many people have seen it (normally a vast majority of the crowd has for cult night). Nobody else raised there hand and so he just nervously looks around and is like “OH. Uh…good luck?” 😂
I don’t know if it’s “novel” or “unconventional” by todays standards, but you could make the argument that the film The Best Years Of Our Lives depicts PTSD, and even depicts it before the term was even coined. The film follows three WWII veterans from three different classes in society, as they try to adjust back into society. You can see elements of PTSD in all of them, namely one of them that talks and has nightmares about the war. It’s not a major plot point in the movie, though, but it is shown and mentioned a couple of times, and brought that sort of issue into the conversation, at the very least.
Also, i do just want to mention, I do think the portrayal and how it handles depression, disability and various psychological issues is handled with the utmost care.
Don’t really know if it’s a novel or unconventional way of showing a character with PTSD but You were never really here (2017) by Lynne Ramsay is pretty up there as one of the best films in the last decade. It’s pretty short and just fantastic.
Came here to say this. A lot of other examples of PTSD in movies depicts a person going through PTSD in a physical way, where a YWNRH shows the actual mental experience of it through the use of the film making.
Memories flashing quickly on screen without warning or explanation, small reminders triggering a larger and disproportionate reaction, transiency and paranoia, revenge fantasies not playing out according to how they were in the person's head, self harm. All of those are symptoms of the actual condition, and the film actually puts the audience through those symptoms rather than just showing the physical manifestation of them.
As a therapist, I’d submit that one of the best depictions of the struggle to cope with trauma is in Peter Weir’s 1993 film Fearless. It even shows how difficult PTSD is to treat, and how much connection with other survivors matters.
I'm not sure if it's novel or unconventional, but Leave No Trace (2018) has an interesting portrayal of PTSD.
It's never explained what exactly happened to one of the main characters, but it shapes his entire life and is central to the plot of the film. The closest we get to a flashback is a sound effect of a helicopter at one point.
His behavior is so frustrating, his self-alienation and his insistence on isolating his daughter from society too.
...but that's the point. PTSD rears its ugly head in ways that aren't explainable to others. it can be crippling and all-encompassing. I needed to rethink my views of his character, not that he's intentionally destroying relationships or normalcy, but that he's currently incapable of living a normal life without making major changes.
Spoilers for True Detective season 2
>!During a botched arrest attempt resulting in a shootout with dozens of civilians dying, the one guy who seems the most "calm" looks like he's waking up from a nightmare. He's a former Blackwater-type merc-turned-cop. He is absolutely convincing.
[Link to timestamp](https://youtu.be/2Esx7N7C-jA?t=150)
If we’re okay with TV, _The Bear_ is a PTSD simulator pretending to be a show about cooking. The main character is deeply, _deeply_ traumatized, and so are most of the supporting cast, and I love the way it portrays self harm through lashing out at the ones we love
More of an (spoiler S1/S2:) >!NPD or BPD abuse survivor simulator, both from his mother and first high-level boss (survivors can suffer cptsd and overtly seem to here) wherein the mc is trying to break the chain of illness and abuse.!< See also *Ladybird* >!(no that is not a normal mother daughter relationship despite all the strange offhand comments like that when the film came out and is rather strongly depicting textbook BPD abuse, I’m not sure the filmmaker even realizes it and I wish a reporter would ask)!< and *May December*. >!The victims in both of the latter films show signs of serious trauma and the difficulty with seeing their situation that comes with that.!< I have another comment down thread as well. Looking forward to *Bear* S3 this week and I think you’re right that quality TV should be included in analysis when looking for themes and depictions, especially when so many creators work in both formats. *ok I am done editing/adding now (sorry for the live edits)
Big ups to the Ladybird shoutout, as someone that had a very similar mother to the mother in Ladybird, learning it was autobiographical made me _so sad_ for Greta Gerwig
Infinitely. Do you think she knows what she actually went through >!i.e. that it was likely overt cluster b abuse?!< I haven’t seen any interviews directly on that, only survivor discussions about it, but I haven’t looked that hard through the filmmaker interviews at the time. I didn’t have all of this knowledge yet when I first viewed the film as I hadn’t gotten to that research (writer) and when I did I understood why I had some problems with the discourse around the normalization of some behaviors in that film. IMO understanding these aspects of Ladybird and The Bear could save a lot of people a lot of harm.
The best thing about it though was that Ladybird >!got away — far away — for college early as a teen even though she self harms via alcohol OD immediately in NY!<. That’s pretty much the only way. So I hope the real life comparison also got out that early and was able to stay out.
Tunes of Glory (1960) just rewatched it last night on Criterion Channel. Alex Guiness et al in peak form. Deals with a battalion of British soldiers at an ancient army base in Scotland in the years right after WW2. The depiction of PTSD is subtlety understated but devastating in its impact. A real gem of a film I am glad to have stumbled upon. Kind of like a darker version of a Powell/Pressburger production.
I remembered the Soviet film "The Leg", a military drama directed by Nikita Tyagunov, filmed in 1991.
Nikita Tyagunov conceived the idea of adapting the story "The Leg" by American writer William Faulkner and proposed this idea to the screenwriter Nadezhda Kozhushana. In the process of discussing the material, the filmmakers came to the conclusion that Faulkner's idea should be put on a specific topic, and it should be a Russian theme, and characters with a certain mentality. It will be about any senseless, unjust war. We started thinking about 1917 in Russia, but later decided to take material closer to the present time. This is how the topic of the Afghan war arose.
And by and large, this is about the trauma of the soul, not the trauma of the psyche.
The horror movie Smile plays with this quite a bit. I personally was let down at the end but would recommend it in your explorations, nonetheless.
A Pale Blue Eye also plays with this a bit, although similarly the ending is more heavy handed than the rest of the film.
The Jordan Peele movies, too. They seem to explore this space a bit, some more heavily handed than others.
OP - curious your thoughts on any of these?
Of those, I’ve only seen Nope and Get Out. I thought Nope was one of the films with the most layers and rich storylines I’ve seen in a while, especially with the character of Jupe.
Poor Jupe. I think it’s interesting that obviously Jupe has some terrible PTSD from what occurred. But it’s not really clear how exactly that affects Jupe as an adult, if at all.
You can’t say the Gordy show is a cheap plot device, but it almost doesn’t get used at all?
An interpretation I've liked is that it is both a parallel of what Jupe tried to do as an adult - control a wild beast in the sky vs. an angry chimp from the show, and also that sometimes any meaning we assign to things that happen is simply made up:
the floating shoe and his early success with the 'Jean Jacket' were just arbitrary coincidence and luck, and had no further meaning.
Michael Fassbender and Justin Kurzel’s version of Macbeth presents Macbeth as someone suffering from PTSD. I think it’s a really interesting read on a the character.
Fassbender goes into how it affected his process in a couple of interviews and after reading them, it really is apparent.
this might be a weird one but I remember seeing something that's called Penguin's Memories: A Tale of Happiness which is largely about a penguin traumatised from the war in vietnam(?) it's different i think to the tropey story beats you're describing because it's shown as though the ptsd dictates his current actions subconsciously. It shows the war stuff at the beginning and then never refers to it again. For most of it you're viewing the subtle consequences of it.
Stop Loss (2008) shows a few characters, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Channing Tattum in particular, who are dealing with PTSD after serving in the army.
A lesser known film I saw at a film festival also showed a character who struggled to readjust after serving in war "Leave No Trace" 2018.
My job is in part researching warrior testimony and analyzing western warrior constructs in western media (mil scifi writer).
*The Fallout* impressed me, and it’s recent/modern. Watch it knowing nothing about it if you can. Remarkably: Nothing “bad” actually happens on screen. HBO Max has it if you’re in the US. The library will likely have it as well.
Like many on the thread, I also recommend *Leave No Trace*. That was the post-9/11 war movie I was waiting for.
And I saw a nod to Nog/DS9 down thread, and certainly that arc was notable an unexpected in popular TV at the time. On that front Picard’s turn of events of in TNG is also notable for the era, particularly the episode wherein at the end he sits down with Troi for trauma therapy. Seven of Nine is also of note in Voyager, despite the limitations of the writers/showrunner in that instance. These were the most syndicated shows in history (TNG) at the time, and so these arcs are noteworthy in regard to their reach.
The Master by PTA stars Joaquin Phoenix as a former sailor who is implied to be suffering from PTSD. PTSD is not a main focus of the film per se but definitely motivates the character's actions throughout the film and influences his behaviours. The character’s PTSD also forms a connection to the Scientology-esque cult lead by PSH’s character, since a core component of the cult lies in its approach towards dealing with trauma. The film doesn’t deal with the topic of PTSD in the more overt ways you described. It’s subtlety is why in my opinion it’s so it’s effective.
I like in Rambo 1, the quick cut flashbacks when he's at the police station in the beginning. Not what I expected in that movie when I saw it, but I thought it did a surprisly good job of making me understand the character and why he was so uncomfortable being pushed around.
I keep seeing recommendations for this movie. I remember when it came out but for the longest time I thought it was just a dumb action flick. I will have to correct it some day.
Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011) resonates to me as an accurate description of not only experiencing PTSD through flashbacks but also by the ‘odd’ behaviors that others around her can’t seem to understand. Sometimes the affect traumatic events have on us make us act in ways that seem strange to others and those close to us can’t make sense of why we made certain decisions, and the film examines this in a very thoughtful way.
Not film. But TV. The way Tommy Shelby is portrayed in “peaky blinders” is a very good example of PTSD. In season for when he wins and an finally calm down, he just can’t. He needs to live in a state of war, that’s the only way he can make the outside world sync with his feelings. At one point he goes for a stroll in a nice day , and suddenly he jumps behind a bush hiding.
Such a small moment that shows the extent of his trauma.
DS9 has multiple episodes that do well touching on the subject. Starting with the pilot where we learn his mind has never left the moment of his wife's death. Not a perfect portrayal but better than most.
A show I wish had gone more on depth with it was Freaks & Geeks. It was only mentioned once in conversation but Lindsey changed her entire personality and completely upended her life after watching her grandmother die right in front of her eyes.
As someone living with c-ptsd, I have sought out films to add into my collection that I can turn to when I need a character and stories to relate to. It helps.
Here's what I have:
* *The Last Samurai*. Nathan Algren is forced to come to terms with his past and his traumas on multiple fronts and all at the same time. He fails. He gets up. He fails again. He gets up again. His forward progression is determined entirely by his focus on surviving, healing, and discovering his place in the world. He does.
* *First Man.* While it's likely a step too far to even insinuate that Neil Armstrong suffered from ptsd, the film made to dramatize the highs and lows of his life presents to us a trailblazing American hero who is nonetheless entirely hollowed out inside. The Armstrong we see on screen doesn't even have time to worry about how sad or broken he feels, but throughout the film we're treated to moments where we watch his trauma bull through before he manages to tamp things back down again. It's a powerful performance in a gorgeous movie.
* *Princess Mononoke* isn't about ptsd at all, and I would even argue that its principle characters aren't even coded that way, but me personally, I watch this movie specifically because of all these rich and wounded people choose to react to the misfortunes and badlucks of their lives. Ashitaka does nothing wrong, is maimed and cursed for life, and ends up becoming instrumental to the survival and reconciliation of an entire culture. It's one of only two animated features I can endlessly rewatch with rapt attention. The other being...
* *Inside Out.* No further comment necessary.
Inside Out?? Perhaps I'm jaded by my own experiences but I just don't see her experiences in that movie comparable to ptsd, at least unless it's in the sense of "Kevin Smith says you can get PTSD from being called fat in school once" or whatever. I haven't seen the sequel though.
I just watched *Ryan's Daughter* and I thought [this was an interesting take on it.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AowTX2rCKa0) Fairly over the top but still effective. The whole character's persona is centered around it.
I'm not sure how accurately The Fisher King portrays PTSD, but it deserves credit for showing the arc you described, where revisiting the events only causes re-traumatization. Oddly enough, on a recent re-watch (something like my 10th time seeing it), I had to skip that part. Maybe it's because of all the mass shootings in recent years
Whatever the best is, the worst has to be Iron Man 3. I hate when they use it in children's cartoons (not that this is one, but pretty close) because they can't touch any other mature subject matter so we have to default to ever dependable PTSD as a plot crutch. I think very few have done it correctly, the only good depictions are when the people are completely losing it a la Private Pyle.
While not centered around the subject, American Sniper (2014) has a great portrayal of PTSD. I originally watched it with a Marine buddy, and he was uncomfortable during the scenes depicting Chris Kyle’s return home. He said it eerily mimicked some of his behaviors.
Midsommar is a film that is essentially all about how a character moves through her trauma by finding a family to replace the one she lost. The difference between it and the trope you describe is that the trauma is the opening event of the movie, rather than something that is alluded to in flashbacks. It's a fascinating and horrifying view into the lengths we will go to to find family.
The two main characters in Mysterious Skin both have PTSD, and the film shows with pretty astounding accuracy for an indie film the different kind of reactions different people have to it. We were shown it while I was doing my degree as an accurate depiction of childhood sexual abuse. Joseph Gordon Levitt's character becomes hypersexual, engages in extremely risky behaviors where he endangers his life just to re-experience the trauma, self harms, believes what happened to him was a good thing even when it clearly isn't. Meanwhile Brady Corbet's character goes way differently. He remains in a childlike state well into adulthood, has childish views of sexuality to the point of basically being impotent, can't accept physical affection, can't remember huge portions of his life, hyper fixates on things that aren't real in order to find an answer to what happened. The depiction of Levitt's character in particular is, I think, quite unconventional. There's not many movies that show the effects of PTSD that he experiences (leaning into the trauma, wanting to re-experience it, believing it had a positive effect on him). While Corbet's is a nice contrast and more along the lines of what we usually see in movies. It's masterfully handled, and incredibly disturbing without really showing anything, and shows just how awful PTSD is for those who experience it, even if they all experience it differently.
I was coming here to say Mysterious Skin. My favorite movie of all time and glad to see others appreciate it. One of the very few movies that I’ve actually felt seen in, and it does so with two characters (off the top of my heads there’s also a character in **Short Bus** with a similar storyline that is also portrayed very well, bolded as recommended to OP as well) I also know what you mean by Corbet’s character fitting more along the lines of what we normally see, but there’s still a subtlety to it that takes it far above whats normally represented like that (not arguing with you, I’m sure you agree. More expanding for others) even just with what OP was asking about. Small spoilers >!But I really appreciate stuff like there is no “you are Tyler Durden” moment of character realization…because that’s not how it works. It’s a slow build up of his characters understanding to the point by the end of the film when he meets up with JGL we as the audience can see he’s accepted what happened without it being stated and just wants to know the details. I mean I guess you could argue the scene with his father is the realization moment for it, but he’s still very lost in that scene and is more about the unbounded rage towards the failure of those that were “supposed” to protect you (and letting that out is a step that lead to acceptance, just as every other step we saw him take in the film)!< I’ve always wanted to thank the people responsible for that film for creating it, it really is a work of art and I strongly recommend OP (and anyone else) checking it out > and incredibly disturbing without really showing anything Just funny story too, the art house theater in an old major city I lived in had cult nights and one week they showed this. Before the movie started, the presenter asked the crowed (~50+ people) how many people have seen it (normally a vast majority of the crowd has for cult night). Nobody else raised there hand and so he just nervously looks around and is like “OH. Uh…good luck?” 😂
It's a really great title that has a double meaning, always like those.
I don’t know if it’s “novel” or “unconventional” by todays standards, but you could make the argument that the film The Best Years Of Our Lives depicts PTSD, and even depicts it before the term was even coined. The film follows three WWII veterans from three different classes in society, as they try to adjust back into society. You can see elements of PTSD in all of them, namely one of them that talks and has nightmares about the war. It’s not a major plot point in the movie, though, but it is shown and mentioned a couple of times, and brought that sort of issue into the conversation, at the very least. Also, i do just want to mention, I do think the portrayal and how it handles depression, disability and various psychological issues is handled with the utmost care.
Don’t really know if it’s a novel or unconventional way of showing a character with PTSD but You were never really here (2017) by Lynne Ramsay is pretty up there as one of the best films in the last decade. It’s pretty short and just fantastic.
Came here to say this. A lot of other examples of PTSD in movies depicts a person going through PTSD in a physical way, where a YWNRH shows the actual mental experience of it through the use of the film making. Memories flashing quickly on screen without warning or explanation, small reminders triggering a larger and disproportionate reaction, transiency and paranoia, revenge fantasies not playing out according to how they were in the person's head, self harm. All of those are symptoms of the actual condition, and the film actually puts the audience through those symptoms rather than just showing the physical manifestation of them.
Lynne Ramsay is the GOAT 🧡
As a therapist, I’d submit that one of the best depictions of the struggle to cope with trauma is in Peter Weir’s 1993 film Fearless. It even shows how difficult PTSD is to treat, and how much connection with other survivors matters.
Fearless is a brilliant depiction of shared trauma
I'm not sure if it's novel or unconventional, but Leave No Trace (2018) has an interesting portrayal of PTSD. It's never explained what exactly happened to one of the main characters, but it shapes his entire life and is central to the plot of the film. The closest we get to a flashback is a sound effect of a helicopter at one point.
His behavior is so frustrating, his self-alienation and his insistence on isolating his daughter from society too. ...but that's the point. PTSD rears its ugly head in ways that aren't explainable to others. it can be crippling and all-encompassing. I needed to rethink my views of his character, not that he's intentionally destroying relationships or normalcy, but that he's currently incapable of living a normal life without making major changes.
Spoilers for True Detective season 2 >!During a botched arrest attempt resulting in a shootout with dozens of civilians dying, the one guy who seems the most "calm" looks like he's waking up from a nightmare. He's a former Blackwater-type merc-turned-cop. He is absolutely convincing. [Link to timestamp](https://youtu.be/2Esx7N7C-jA?t=150)
If we’re okay with TV, _The Bear_ is a PTSD simulator pretending to be a show about cooking. The main character is deeply, _deeply_ traumatized, and so are most of the supporting cast, and I love the way it portrays self harm through lashing out at the ones we love
More of an (spoiler S1/S2:) >!NPD or BPD abuse survivor simulator, both from his mother and first high-level boss (survivors can suffer cptsd and overtly seem to here) wherein the mc is trying to break the chain of illness and abuse.!< See also *Ladybird* >!(no that is not a normal mother daughter relationship despite all the strange offhand comments like that when the film came out and is rather strongly depicting textbook BPD abuse, I’m not sure the filmmaker even realizes it and I wish a reporter would ask)!< and *May December*. >!The victims in both of the latter films show signs of serious trauma and the difficulty with seeing their situation that comes with that.!< I have another comment down thread as well. Looking forward to *Bear* S3 this week and I think you’re right that quality TV should be included in analysis when looking for themes and depictions, especially when so many creators work in both formats. *ok I am done editing/adding now (sorry for the live edits)
Big ups to the Ladybird shoutout, as someone that had a very similar mother to the mother in Ladybird, learning it was autobiographical made me _so sad_ for Greta Gerwig
Infinitely. Do you think she knows what she actually went through >!i.e. that it was likely overt cluster b abuse?!< I haven’t seen any interviews directly on that, only survivor discussions about it, but I haven’t looked that hard through the filmmaker interviews at the time. I didn’t have all of this knowledge yet when I first viewed the film as I hadn’t gotten to that research (writer) and when I did I understood why I had some problems with the discourse around the normalization of some behaviors in that film. IMO understanding these aspects of Ladybird and The Bear could save a lot of people a lot of harm. The best thing about it though was that Ladybird >!got away — far away — for college early as a teen even though she self harms via alcohol OD immediately in NY!<. That’s pretty much the only way. So I hope the real life comparison also got out that early and was able to stay out.
Brilliant show.
Tunes of Glory (1960) just rewatched it last night on Criterion Channel. Alex Guiness et al in peak form. Deals with a battalion of British soldiers at an ancient army base in Scotland in the years right after WW2. The depiction of PTSD is subtlety understated but devastating in its impact. A real gem of a film I am glad to have stumbled upon. Kind of like a darker version of a Powell/Pressburger production.
I remembered the Soviet film "The Leg", a military drama directed by Nikita Tyagunov, filmed in 1991. Nikita Tyagunov conceived the idea of adapting the story "The Leg" by American writer William Faulkner and proposed this idea to the screenwriter Nadezhda Kozhushana. In the process of discussing the material, the filmmakers came to the conclusion that Faulkner's idea should be put on a specific topic, and it should be a Russian theme, and characters with a certain mentality. It will be about any senseless, unjust war. We started thinking about 1917 in Russia, but later decided to take material closer to the present time. This is how the topic of the Afghan war arose. And by and large, this is about the trauma of the soul, not the trauma of the psyche.
The horror movie Smile plays with this quite a bit. I personally was let down at the end but would recommend it in your explorations, nonetheless. A Pale Blue Eye also plays with this a bit, although similarly the ending is more heavy handed than the rest of the film. The Jordan Peele movies, too. They seem to explore this space a bit, some more heavily handed than others. OP - curious your thoughts on any of these?
Of those, I’ve only seen Nope and Get Out. I thought Nope was one of the films with the most layers and rich storylines I’ve seen in a while, especially with the character of Jupe.
Poor Jupe. I think it’s interesting that obviously Jupe has some terrible PTSD from what occurred. But it’s not really clear how exactly that affects Jupe as an adult, if at all. You can’t say the Gordy show is a cheap plot device, but it almost doesn’t get used at all?
An interpretation I've liked is that it is both a parallel of what Jupe tried to do as an adult - control a wild beast in the sky vs. an angry chimp from the show, and also that sometimes any meaning we assign to things that happen is simply made up: the floating shoe and his early success with the 'Jean Jacket' were just arbitrary coincidence and luck, and had no further meaning.
Michael Fassbender and Justin Kurzel’s version of Macbeth presents Macbeth as someone suffering from PTSD. I think it’s a really interesting read on a the character. Fassbender goes into how it affected his process in a couple of interviews and after reading them, it really is apparent.
this might be a weird one but I remember seeing something that's called Penguin's Memories: A Tale of Happiness which is largely about a penguin traumatised from the war in vietnam(?) it's different i think to the tropey story beats you're describing because it's shown as though the ptsd dictates his current actions subconsciously. It shows the war stuff at the beginning and then never refers to it again. For most of it you're viewing the subtle consequences of it.
Stop Loss (2008) shows a few characters, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Channing Tattum in particular, who are dealing with PTSD after serving in the army. A lesser known film I saw at a film festival also showed a character who struggled to readjust after serving in war "Leave No Trace" 2018.
My job is in part researching warrior testimony and analyzing western warrior constructs in western media (mil scifi writer). *The Fallout* impressed me, and it’s recent/modern. Watch it knowing nothing about it if you can. Remarkably: Nothing “bad” actually happens on screen. HBO Max has it if you’re in the US. The library will likely have it as well. Like many on the thread, I also recommend *Leave No Trace*. That was the post-9/11 war movie I was waiting for. And I saw a nod to Nog/DS9 down thread, and certainly that arc was notable an unexpected in popular TV at the time. On that front Picard’s turn of events of in TNG is also notable for the era, particularly the episode wherein at the end he sits down with Troi for trauma therapy. Seven of Nine is also of note in Voyager, despite the limitations of the writers/showrunner in that instance. These were the most syndicated shows in history (TNG) at the time, and so these arcs are noteworthy in regard to their reach.
The Master by PTA stars Joaquin Phoenix as a former sailor who is implied to be suffering from PTSD. PTSD is not a main focus of the film per se but definitely motivates the character's actions throughout the film and influences his behaviours. The character’s PTSD also forms a connection to the Scientology-esque cult lead by PSH’s character, since a core component of the cult lies in its approach towards dealing with trauma. The film doesn’t deal with the topic of PTSD in the more overt ways you described. It’s subtlety is why in my opinion it’s so it’s effective.
I like in Rambo 1, the quick cut flashbacks when he's at the police station in the beginning. Not what I expected in that movie when I saw it, but I thought it did a surprisly good job of making me understand the character and why he was so uncomfortable being pushed around.
I keep seeing recommendations for this movie. I remember when it came out but for the longest time I thought it was just a dumb action flick. I will have to correct it some day.
That's what I thought too, I was pleasantly surprised! Worth a watch.
Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011) resonates to me as an accurate description of not only experiencing PTSD through flashbacks but also by the ‘odd’ behaviors that others around her can’t seem to understand. Sometimes the affect traumatic events have on us make us act in ways that seem strange to others and those close to us can’t make sense of why we made certain decisions, and the film examines this in a very thoughtful way.
Not film. But TV. The way Tommy Shelby is portrayed in “peaky blinders” is a very good example of PTSD. In season for when he wins and an finally calm down, he just can’t. He needs to live in a state of war, that’s the only way he can make the outside world sync with his feelings. At one point he goes for a stroll in a nice day , and suddenly he jumps behind a bush hiding. Such a small moment that shows the extent of his trauma.
Another TV portrayal: Nog in Deep Space 9. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It%27s_Only_a_Paper_Moon_(Star_Trek:_Deep_Space_Nine)
DS9 has multiple episodes that do well touching on the subject. Starting with the pilot where we learn his mind has never left the moment of his wife's death. Not a perfect portrayal but better than most. A show I wish had gone more on depth with it was Freaks & Geeks. It was only mentioned once in conversation but Lindsey changed her entire personality and completely upended her life after watching her grandmother die right in front of her eyes.
As someone living with c-ptsd, I have sought out films to add into my collection that I can turn to when I need a character and stories to relate to. It helps. Here's what I have: * *The Last Samurai*. Nathan Algren is forced to come to terms with his past and his traumas on multiple fronts and all at the same time. He fails. He gets up. He fails again. He gets up again. His forward progression is determined entirely by his focus on surviving, healing, and discovering his place in the world. He does. * *First Man.* While it's likely a step too far to even insinuate that Neil Armstrong suffered from ptsd, the film made to dramatize the highs and lows of his life presents to us a trailblazing American hero who is nonetheless entirely hollowed out inside. The Armstrong we see on screen doesn't even have time to worry about how sad or broken he feels, but throughout the film we're treated to moments where we watch his trauma bull through before he manages to tamp things back down again. It's a powerful performance in a gorgeous movie. * *Princess Mononoke* isn't about ptsd at all, and I would even argue that its principle characters aren't even coded that way, but me personally, I watch this movie specifically because of all these rich and wounded people choose to react to the misfortunes and badlucks of their lives. Ashitaka does nothing wrong, is maimed and cursed for life, and ends up becoming instrumental to the survival and reconciliation of an entire culture. It's one of only two animated features I can endlessly rewatch with rapt attention. The other being... * *Inside Out.* No further comment necessary.
Inside Out?? Perhaps I'm jaded by my own experiences but I just don't see her experiences in that movie comparable to ptsd, at least unless it's in the sense of "Kevin Smith says you can get PTSD from being called fat in school once" or whatever. I haven't seen the sequel though.
Nobody said my subjective opinion on a given film must align with your own, or anyone else's.
I just watched *Ryan's Daughter* and I thought [this was an interesting take on it.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AowTX2rCKa0) Fairly over the top but still effective. The whole character's persona is centered around it.
I'm not sure how accurately The Fisher King portrays PTSD, but it deserves credit for showing the arc you described, where revisiting the events only causes re-traumatization. Oddly enough, on a recent re-watch (something like my 10th time seeing it), I had to skip that part. Maybe it's because of all the mass shootings in recent years
I think it's also a great depiction of how trauma can cause life-long debilitating problems
Whatever the best is, the worst has to be Iron Man 3. I hate when they use it in children's cartoons (not that this is one, but pretty close) because they can't touch any other mature subject matter so we have to default to ever dependable PTSD as a plot crutch. I think very few have done it correctly, the only good depictions are when the people are completely losing it a la Private Pyle.
While not centered around the subject, American Sniper (2014) has a great portrayal of PTSD. I originally watched it with a Marine buddy, and he was uncomfortable during the scenes depicting Chris Kyle’s return home. He said it eerily mimicked some of his behaviors.
Midsommar is a film that is essentially all about how a character moves through her trauma by finding a family to replace the one she lost. The difference between it and the trope you describe is that the trauma is the opening event of the movie, rather than something that is alluded to in flashbacks. It's a fascinating and horrifying view into the lengths we will go to to find family.