Movies about learning disorders - Mental Health Related Films

Human lives and behaviour are far more nuanced and emotive than any psychiatric diagnostic system or symptom checklist can ever portray.

Most people recognise aspects of themselves in at least a few psychiatric diagnostic categories. The difference between normal and disorder is not straightforward and often has more to do with degree rather than kind, i.e. does it cause big problems?

While movies are not perfect depictions of reality, they often present themes in relatable, enriching, usefully challenging, and thought-provoking ways.

We invite you to explore mental health through movies that raise awareness, open dialogue, present complexity, entertain, and/or normalise experiences.

Click to see the Ultimate List of Mental Health Movies index

What is Specific Learning Disorder?

Specific learning disorder is a neurodevelopmental diagnosis characterised by difficulties in concentration, language development, and visual information processing.

People with learning disorders can learn strategies for coping with their disabilities and increases the likelihood of success in school and later in life.

In psychiatry, specific learning disorder is defined in the DSM-5 (psychiatric diagnostic manual) as follows…

Abridged DSM-V Diagnostic Criteria of specific learning disorder | Provided for educational purposes

A. Difficulties learning and using academic skills, as indicated by the presence of at least one of the following symptoms that have persisted for at least 6 months, despite the provision of interventions that target those difficulties:

1. Inaccurate or slow and effortful word reading (e.g., reads single words aloud incorrectly or slowly and hesitantly, frequently guesses words, has difficulty sounding out words).

2. Difficulty understanding the meaning of what is read (e.g., may read text accurately but not understand the sequence, relationships, inferences, or deeper meanings of what is read).

3. Difficulties with spelling (e.g., may add, omit, or substitute vowels or consonants).

4. Difficulties with written expression (e.g., makes multiple grammatical or punctuation errors within sentences; employs poor paragraph organisation; written expression of ideas lacks clarity).

5. Difficulties mastering number sense, number facts, or calculation (e.g., has poor understanding of numbers, their magnitude, and relationships; counts on fingers to add single-digit numbers instead of recalling the math fact as peers do; gets lost in the midst of arithmetic computation and may switch procedures).

6. Difficulties with mathematical reasoning (e.g., has severe difficulty applying mathematical concepts, facts, or procedures to solve quantitative problems).

B. The affected academic skills are substantially and quantifiably below those expected for the individual’s chronological age, and cause significant interference with academic or occupational performance, or with activities of daily living, as confirmed by individually administered standardised achievement measures and comprehensive clinical assessment. For individuals age 17 years and older, a documented history of impairing learning difficulties may be substituted for the standardised assessment.

C. The learning difficulties begin during school-age years but may not become fully manifest until the demands for those affected academic skills tight deadline, excessively heavy academic loads).

D. The learning difficulties are not better accounted for by intellectual disabilities, uncorrected visual or auditory acuity, other mental or neurological disorders, psychosocial adversity, lack of proficiency in the language of academic instruction, or inadequate educational instruction.

Movies about Specific learning disorder

If we missed an essential film about specific learning disorder, please let us know. We would love to include it.

Note: Movies may trigger painful memories and emotions. Please use your judgement and ensure support is available if need be.

Movie Title: Charly - Watch now on Prime

Release: 1968

Rated: 7

Cast: Cliff Robertson, Claire Bloom, Lilia Skala

Storyline: A young man who has a learning disorder participates in a medical experiment where he becomes a genius. His relationship with his teacher is threatened by an unexpected complication.

Movie Title: The Hand that Rocks the Cradle - Watch now on Prime

Release: 1992

Rated: 6.5

Cast: Annabella Sciorra, Rebecca De Mornay, Matt McCoy

Storyline: A doctor accused of molesting a patient has committed suicide. His widow plans to take revenge and poses as a nanny for the patient's family but a handyman with a learning disorder saves the family from being murdered.

Movie Title: I Am Sam - Watch now on Prime

Release: 2001

Rated: 7.6

Cast: Sean Penn, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dakota Fanning

Storyline: A man with a learning disorder fights for custody of his 7-year-old daughter. He meets a cold-hearted lawyer that soon realises the value of family and love.

References and Links

American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.books.9780890425596

Specific learning disorder basic facts: https://childmind.org/guide/specific-learning-disorder/

What is specific learning disorder?: https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/specific-learning-disorder/what-is-specific-learning-disorder

More on specific learning disorder: https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/specific-learning-disorder/what-is-specific-learning-disorder

Acknowledgements

The above article was written under my close direction and supervision. However, much credit goes to Charlene Poliquit (my right-hand man) and Andri Eigenberger (my beloved aunt) for their huge efforts in bringing this task to life.

Vincenzo Sinisi

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash