Psychological Disorders In Benny And Joon

In Jeremiah S. Chechik’s film, Benny and Joon Mary Matterson plays a mentally ill character by the name of Joon. Joon Suffers specifically from two psychological disorders knows as schizophrenia and asperger syndrome. Being Schizophrenic makes it hard for Joon to think, feel, and behave how a typical human being is expected to. In addition, Joon’s asperger syndrome enables her to socialize and communicate in an effective way. This film underlines both psychological disorders so that viewers can gain a better understanding of how these psychological disorders affect real-life individuals.
Late in the film, Joon decides to run away with Sam. Joon’s brother takes in Sam as company for Joon while he is at work. Shortly after Sam and Joon become

While on the bus Joon begins to hallucinate forcing everyone to evacuate. When Joon hallucinates she talks to herself in an agitated manner as if someone else is there. Joon says things such as “No, no. I‟m not” and “It’s not all in my head” that would imply that she was talking to someone else but she is really talking to the voices she hears in her head. Hallucinations are just one symptom, another common symptom of Schizophrenia Joon possesses are delusions. You see Joon have a delusion during a game of ping pong with Benny. When Benny challenges her and says her serve doesn’t count because the ball did not hit the table she claims he is cheating her. Joon acts out irrationally because she thinks Benny is cheating her and throws the paddle across the room. The delusions make it hard for Joon to admit when she is in the wrong. Throughout the movie, it is apparent Joon is being treated with medication and therapy to help manage her illness. According to the textbook, some of the symptoms of schizophrenia include hallucinations, delusions, disorganized speech,

This disorder makes it difficult for Joon to interact with others and communicate. When Sam first moved in with Benny and Joon Benny told him that Joon was sick and warned him to “let her go about her routine” before leaving for work. While Joon was going about her routine she saw Sam gliding across the room from the window and playing heard music blasting from the house. Joon went into a panic and kicked him out of the house. When Benny got home Joon just kept saying “He was in the air and…and…with a thing and it was really loud. It was really loud”. Joon was thrown when her daily routine got off track and was unable to communicate to Benny why she kicked Sam out. Benny later learned that Sam was listening to music while cleaning the house. Joon does not like when things get moved around or when there are changes in her routine. The movie showed that Joon stuck to a schedule and went to therapy to help her manage her symptoms. Because of Joon’s illness she is sensitive to sound, anxious, and can be impulsive. Individuals who have asperger syndrome are treated in therapy with a wide range of specialist to help them manage all different aspects in their life. There are many similarities between the portrayal of asperger syndrome in the movie and in the textbook. The difficulties Mary Matterson’s character Joon faces and the individuals who have this same disorder in real-life are identical. A family member of mine was