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“Imagine if you suddenly learned that the people, the places, the moments most important to you were not gone, not dead, but worse, had never been. What kind of hell would that be?” -Dr. Rosen, A Beautiful Mind
A Beautiful Mind is a truly beautiful movie, and it should not be missed by anyone of proper age to appreciate its beauty. It is about a schizophrenic mathematician named “John Nash”, who spends all of his days trying to find a revolutionary discovery/formula that will change life. The irony, is that life doesn’t work out if we try to solve it like an equation. It is only when we let go and let life happen to us, that we will find our true happiness. The Beautiful Mind is an exaggerated tale of this law, and how terrible life can get if you try to solve its nonexistent formula.
John Nash is an awkward man, not good in social situations, but an amazingly talented mathematician. He is so good, in fact, that he spends most of his time trying to find a revolutionary discovery in mathematics. I like to think of it as a “Life formula”, or a discovery that will never happen. The twist of the movie, which happens about halfway through, is that Nash is suffering from a severe form of schizophrenia, and half of the situations/places that exist in his life, are only part of his “beautiful” mind. One imaginary character that he creates is his roommate, Charles. Nash gets along very well with Charles, which makes the audience suspicious from the start, seeing that John Nash doesn’t really get along well with anyone else. The other character that Nash creates is named Parcher, who is working to solve a conspiracy case of an atomic bomb threat towards the U.S. When the conspiracy situation goes wrong in Nash’s head, that is when he is in need of mental help. He is taken into a psychiatric hospital, and receives intense treatment. Upon returning home, the visions are suppressed, but so is every aspect of John Nash’s beautiful mind. He no longer can think right, feel right, or act right. He stops taking the medication, and loses another battle with his schizophrenia. Instead of going back to the hospital, he tries to battle the hallucinations on his own. This is the turning point of the movie, where Nash learns how to really live his life.
Nash learns that life is more than making a discovery, or solving an equation. There is love and emotion involved; A wife, taking care of your baby, and the everyday joys of life. Instead of focusing his time on himself, John decides to go back to teaching classes, and shares his amazing knowledge with his students. All this, while ignoring the characters that took over his mind. This is where an amazing inspirational quote is mentioned by John Nash, which I will mention here:
“Are the hallucinations…gone?”
“No, but I’ve gotten used to ignoring them, and as a result, they’ve kind of given up on me. I think that’s sorta what it’s like with dreams and nightmares. We’ve gotta keep feeding them for them to stay alive” -John Nash, A Beautiful Mind
That is one of the most true and inspirational quotes I have ever heard. Dreams will gradually disappear, if we do not focus on them, and take constant action towards them. Nightmares will continue, as long as we feed them our attention. John Nash wins a Nobel Peace Prize at the end of the movie, for his contributions to society. A Beautiful Mind is a movie about the importance of enjoying every day of life, and not getting caught up in ridiculous theories or fantasies for a future that may never be. If we don’t focus on the present moment, it may be the biggest regret in our life. Embrace life each day, don’t embrace a fantasy world.
What do you think of the movie “A Beautiful Mind”? Please let me know in the comments below. I would love to know your opinion!
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8 comments
July 6, 2009 at 6:34 am
Amazing analysis my friend. I’m happy that you actually went the seconda fter getting off the phone, watched it, and wrote the review. Amazing.
- Roman.
July 9, 2009 at 12:36 am
good job Josh, by far my favorite movie of all time wayy to represent it to its fullest..lookin forward to more reviews I rented Gran Torino after reading your help your confort zone blog and absolutley loved it. keep it up my man…
July 9, 2009 at 12:36 pm
Stango, thank you so much for the kind words. Gran Torino had to be one of the funniest movies of the year! I loved Clint Eastwood’s character! He is a genius for making a movie like that.
Take care,
Josh Lipovetsky.
October 7, 2010 at 11:43 pm
I am sorry, but where is the analysis? This is a plot summary with a theme definition.
March 16, 2011 at 11:35 pm
Describe the style of editing that is used in the film A beautiful Mind? What types of shots are used? what types of visual? Does this scene follow continuity editing or does it workwork in a different style? How does this effect the audiences understanding of the scene?
February 20, 2012 at 3:33 am
Please allow me to argue with your analysis.
As for reality and future, your extension of the film analysis works the opposite way.
While generations after generations follow the new age kind of thinking, they ‘learn’ to meditate and to live “in the present” through their naive dreams, by lack of their
action about reality they create a future that is full of real nightmares. These nightmares are already upon us,
yet most of us are still trying to dream them away.
And in the final analysis, yes, there is a “formula” of life, which Nash solves at the end, the solution of which would save mankind from the approaching nightmare, and this beautiful film is about that beautiful formula.
April 20, 2012 at 7:59 pm
I am writing a paper about the “underlying meaning” the director is trying to get you to see in this movie. In your opinion, what is the underlying meaning?
April 20, 2012 at 9:35 pm
To sum it up, Donna, I would say that it’s all about letting go. Stop grasping on to all of these little things that make up our day. The little things have as much power over our lives as the big things.
Trying to make life into an equation is a surefire recipe for disaster. Life is complex, and we often try to create simple solutions to this complicated problem. As soon as we acknowledge the complexity of life, we gain back some of our freedom.