Medical Malpractice

Can you think of any films that paint mental asylums in a nice light?

Many films such as One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Girl Interupted and now Changeling make 'psychopathic wards' look like awful places to be. Granted, usually these films are set (or filmed) a while ago in the past when they may have been terrible places to be. I am wondering those if these films do show an accurate portrayal (for the time they're set), and whether there are any films that show such places positively?

Public Comments

1. The Caretakers (1963) This one covers bad and good, with new administration wanting to make positive changes. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056908/ The Snake Pit (1948) This also presents some rough edges, but there is no cruel or callous treatment. The leading lady has a breakdown, is treated then is finally released. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040806/ Possessed (1947) I don't recall details, but I think this shows the institution in a positive light. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039725/ I'm sure I can think of others, but it's after 7 a.m.~long past bedtime!
2. I thought that the institution portrayed in the movie Awakenings (1990) had a positive image, for the most part. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099077/ I just saw the movie called Away From Her (2006) in which a woman is committed to the "second floor" of a nursing home which specializes in the care of those with severe dementia or Alzheimer's. The setting they showed in the movie was actually better than I've seen in real life. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0491747/ Another nursing home setting that didn't look "bad" and was realistic was in the movie Stuck (2007) with Mena Suvari who plays the part of a nurse's aide. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0758786/ There's an old Bruce Willis movie called Mercury Rising (1998) in which they show just snippets of a children's mental institution and that looked positive to me. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120749/ NOTE: Shock therapy is almost always given a bad rap in movies (such as in Changeling). However, electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), also known as electroshock, is a well established, albeit controversial psychiatric treatment in which seizures are electrically induced in anesthetized patients for therapeutic effect. Today, ECT is most often used as a treatment for severe depression which has not responded to other treatment, and is also used in the treatment of mania (often in bipolar disorder), catatonia, schizophrenia and other disorders. If administered correctly, the benefits outweigh the short duration of discomfort. Memory loss is probably the biggest side effect but the memories usually comes back in full. Bilateral shocks to the temples cause the most memory loss and it CAN be permanent. I just read that Carrie Fisher (of Star Wars fame) goes for elective shock therapy every month!