API Films and Mental Health
Since May is Mental Health Awareness Month, here are some of my favorite API movies exploring mental issues 💚
Cure (Japan, 1997)
Director: Kiyoshi Kurosawa (Daiei Film)
Written and directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Cure follows a detective investigating a series of spine-chilling murders where an X is carved into the neck of each victim. All the murderers are found at the scenes; however, they do not have any memory of committing the crimes. This psychological thriller masterpiece, which discusses paranoid schizophrenia, dementia, hypnosis, and hallucination, initiated the explosion of Japanese horror in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Stream: The Criterion Channel
Perfect Blue (Japan, 1997)
Director: Satoshi Kon (Madhouse)
A member of a J-pop idol group decides to retire from her music career in order to pursue acting. As she is stalked by an obsessive fan and several murders happen to people around her, Mima blurs the line between reality and fantasy and starts losing control of her mind. Perfect Blue talks about psychosis, multiple identity disorder, depression as well as obsessive love disorder. The movie has had a huge influence on Western cinema. American filmmaker Darren Aronofsky’s Requiem for a Dream (2000) and Black Swan (2010) are inspired by Satoshi Kon’s dark, twisted film.
Stream: AMC+
Split (USA, 2016)
Director: M. Night Shyamalan (Blinding Edge Pictures, Blumhouse Productions)
Surprising audiences by being both a long-awaited sequel to 2000’s Unbreakable and a standalone psychological supervillain origin story, Indian-born American filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan returned to his signature style with Split in 2016. Featuring brilliantly bold and dynamic performances from James McAvoy and Anya Taylor-Joy, the film tells the story of Kevin, a man who has dissociative identity disorder rooted in childhood trauma causing him to live with 23 different personalities or “alters”. When one of his bad alters, Dennis, takes control and kidnaps three girls, they must work with his friendlier alter, 9-year-old Hedwig, to escape the clutches of the alter they call “The Beast”.
Stream: Peacock
Everything Everywhere All At Once (USA, 2022)
Directors: Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert (IAC Films, Gozie AGBO, Year of the Rat, Ley Line Entertainment)
The most awarded film of all time. The mega hit indie movie of the early 2020s. Everything Everywhere All At Once is one of the most creative and original cinematic works we have seen in years. The film is centered on Evelyn Wang (Michelle Yeoh) and her struggles with the IRS, marriage, and mother-daughter relationship. Throughout 140 minutes of chaos and multiverse jumping, the Daniels discuss psychological topics such as Asian American identity, transgenerational trauma, ADHD, neurodivergence, and depression. EEAAO shines a light not only on the underrepresented immigrant parents but also on the mental health crisis among Asian Diaspora youth.
Stream: Paramount+
Turning Red (USA, 2022)
Director: Domee Shi (Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar Animation Studios)
In Domee Shi’s feature directorial debut, the 13-year-old Chinese-Canadian Meilin transforms into a kaiju-sized red panda whenever she has a strong emotion, which is due to a curse of her ancestors. The whole movie is a metaphor for puberty and a reminder not to suppress our own feelings. Turning Red also depicts the complex parent-child relationships as well as the generational trauma in Asian families. This is the first Pixar feature film solely directed by a woman and led by an all-female creative team.
Stream: Disney+
