Autism in films and TV dramas

The good doctor, a drama about an autistic surgeon,  is my current favourite. 

There is a film called "The Last Right" (2019) a road movie set in Ireland, in which a man, his autistic brother and a woman transport a coffin from Clonakilty to Rathlin Island.  Trailer here:

www.youtube.com/watch

Not a film with a representation of autism, but one about being in a minority.

Part comedy, part drama, part stark analysis of prejudice and ignorance.

A worthy return to form by Spike Lee in, for me, one of the year's most important films.

Available for rent on YouTube from £3.49...

BlacKkKlansman

Hi Everyone

We've just joined today and are finding our way around the site. We are a film makers based in Somerset / Bristol area and we run creative film making projects for artists who self describe as being Neurodiverse. We are also making a feature film called 'Dawn Of The Dark Fox' directed by Michael Smith, who has autism spectrum disorder, who has channelled his unique vision into this exciting project.

We are looking to connect with other Neurodiverse creatives and film makers initially in the Bristol area who would like to take part in our next Different Voices project in Jan 2019. Please get in touch via our website.

All the best

Stephen (biggerhouse film)

biggerhousefilm.co.uk/differentvoices

Here's an interesting article about Rain Man, 30 years on...

amp.theguardian.com/.../rain-man-at-30-autism-hoffman-cruise-levinson

I loved Atypical too. The whole family did. I didn't really care if it was a very stereotypical portrayal or not - it was done very well and really showed what it can be like having autism in a neurotypical world...and how everyone in the family deals with it differently. If you haven't seen this, it's on Netflix and is really an amazing watch, 2 seasons so far and hopefully more.

It was through Sheldon in The Big Bang Theory that my wife and kids understood me better. We do lots of things the same, there's things we struggle with, but we're also very capable. Plus, he's smart and funny, and that's always a good way to get things across to the masses on the screen.

There's also one of the characters in "Earth to Echo" has autism, which I bizarrely found out on I think it was Wikipedia. It's never mentioned in any way, but if you know what you're looking for, it's really apparent. The main thing that struck me was that the boy's family was moving house the next day and the entire house was either completely empty or boxed up...and his bedroom had not been touched at all. His books, models, computer bits, bed, everything, not been packed at all. I imagined his parents' plan was to pack it up at the very very last minute, move it to the new house, and place absolutely everything back into its correct place before he was allowed in the room.

I identified a lot with Benedict Cumberbatch when he did Sherlock. Every episode was like "ya that's me".

Come to think of it, Alan Shore thought he could be as well. 

I had always a fondness for Jerry in Boston legal. In fact it was his character, that made me think I was autistic.  And I was right.

He maybe a slightly over exaggerated character, but still fond if him. 

Why there was never a spin off series, I will never know.

Yes - I agree, it's a brilliant way for her to have got that car! 

Love those series.  I like how at the end of the 4th series you finally find out how she has that car.  It's not what you think!

I have a hypothesis that depression is a similar thing.  A lot of the things it triggers seem like getting you ready for a long journey.  In our hunter-gatherer selves I think it may have been a mechanism for telling us when it was time to move on from where we were that wasn't doing us any good any more to somewhere else that will hopefully be better for us.

Unfortunately that's not so feasible in today's world!

The raspberry blower.

One of my favourites too.

'Fury' is a fine anti-war film that I've seen many times, and am watching again now.

Although there are no characters that are autistic, the character of Norman - with the bullying and 'requirement to conform' he experiences - makes me think about what we endure on a daily basis when trying to deal with the NT world.  The section half-way through, set in the apartment of two German women, particularly hits home...

Fury

"When people talk to each other, they never say what they mean.  They say something else and you're expected to just know what they mean."

I know I've already mentioned this film before - but I watched it again this afternoon (for about the 6th time) and still think it's one of the most credible performances of a man with (undiagnosed) ASC I've ever seen.  That Turing was also a homosexual at a time when it was a criminal offence... how he must have suffered.

His work helped us to defeat the N a z i s.  But because of his 'crime', he committed suicide.  This is how this country treats its heroes.

The 2013 Royal Pardon he received still doesn't make up for the greater crime this country committed against him.

The Imitation Game

Check out the Christian Bale character - Dr Michael Burry - in 'The Big Short'.  Burry was the man who first realised that the housing market bubble was about to burst in the US in 2008, leading to the global financial crisis that brought some of the world's biggest banks to their knees.  It's one of my favourite movies, and I've watched it several times.   And I'm about to watch it again this afternoon...

Check this out...

Dr Michael Burry

I watched UFO the other night.  The maths and science takes up much of the movie, and went completely over my head.  But the film is still compelling, nevertheless.

Definitely one for those for whom maths and science are walks in the park!  Or for people who are simply interested in the idea of life elsewhere...

UFO

Yes! I was surprised when some people said the character was overdone or not, in some way, quite believable. I could see a lot of me in there, put it that way. Probably an uncomfortable amount, if I am being honest.

I've been over the bridge too, many times - I lived in that part of the world for a while

Wow! How wonderful. I would really like to go there one day. 

Yes, I have. I've also actually been across that bridge by train.

Oh yes, I absolutely loved watching her performance - one of the things that influenced me to have an assessment myself. Have you watched all of the series? I only watched a recent one so I have some catching up to do.