Introduction
Psychological conditions have specific symptoms and signs that manifest in individuals, allowing specialists to match them to relevant diagnoses. To better learn how a mental disorder can develop in a person, it is informative to watch movies in which a character suffers from it and acts accordingly. The Fisher King is a film that tells the story of Parry and John, two complex characters with abnormal behavior. This paper discusses how Parry shows the symptoms of schizoaffective disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and John develops substance intoxication, delirium, and narcissistic personality disorder, also having signs of PTSD.
Parry’s Disorders
Schizoaffective Disorder
To begin with, it is possible to analyze Parry’s behavior and match it to several potential conditions. This character is a homeless man who wears strange clothes, struggles to behave appropriately, and lacks robust social relationships. The first diagnosis would be schizoaffective disorder, coded as 295.70 in the DSM-5-TR classification. According to the diagnostic criteria, an individual with this illness has several symptoms of general schizophrenia, such as delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech and behavior, and other negative symptoms (“Diagnostic Criteria for 295.70 Schizoaffective Disorder”).
In the movie, Parry has delusions or false beliefs about himself and his purpose in life. When he meets John, Parry describes him as a knight on an extraordinary quest. His entire life is defined by his mission to find the Holy Grail (The Fisher King 00:25:00). He cannot care for himself or some aspects of his life, always wearing dirty clothes and unwilling to find a job.
Further, this delusion is supported by auditory and visual hallucinations. Parry hears how the little people talk to him and follows their will and guidance, and he also sees the Red Knight who tries to attack him (The Fisher King 00:23:22; 01:39:40). When caught by his hallucinations, Parry cannot control his speech or behavior as he often changes topics from one sentence to another and acts abnormally outside, jumping on cars and wearing strange knight clothes. Eventually, manic episodes, when the character has increased energy and euphoric mood, support this diagnosis.
PTSD
Another disorder that Parry might be diagnosed with is posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Coded as 309.81, this mental condition includes several symptoms and signs associated with an individual’s response to a severely adverse situation. Thus, PTSD can develop if “the person experienced, witnessed, or was confronted with an event or events that involved actual or threatened death” (“Diagnostic Criteria for 309.81 Posttraumatic Stress Disorder”). In The Fisher King, Parry witnessed his beloved wife’s horrible murder, and the terror and grief he felt might have caused this mental condition (01:40:40). He could neither help his wife and other people who were injured nor escape the fear.
Furthermore, PTSD makes the person experience intrusive and recurrent recollections of the stressful event, and these thoughts and images interfere with daily life. On the one hand, the film does not depict how Parry undergoes the same traumatic situation repeatedly in his mind. On the other hand, there is a scene when the audience sees a hidden shrine that the character keeps to his wife, and he also remembers that tragic event when meeting the Red Knight (The Fisher King00:24:24; 01:40:40).
There is another symptom of PTSD that is more evident in Parry: “persistent avoidance of stimuli associated with the trauma” (“Diagnostic Criteria for 309.81”). When Jack tries to talk with Parry about his true identity and past, the man has a mental breakdown and escapes into his fantasies, chasing the Red Knight (The Fisher King 00:44:57-00:47:53). He avoids any thoughts about his wife and past career, and also cannot recall the traumatic event. Therefore, PTSD and schizoaffective disorder are the two mental conditions that Parry most likely suffers from.
Jack Lucas’s Disorders
PTSD
Jack Lucas is the second main character in the movie, and he is partly responsible for the tragic death of Parry’s wife. Being a radio host, Jack accidentally motivated a man to perform a mass shooting, during which the woman died. This involvement might have caused PTSD in Jack, and it is possible to say that both characters have this disorder (“Diagnostic Criteria for 309.81”). Jack learned about the terrible incident from TV news, and he showed feelings of helplessness and intense horror when he was unable to move or react adequately.
In this character, there is constant recalling and reexperiencing of the traumatic event, and Jack lives under the pressure of guilt and regret. Noticeably, his dissociative flashback episodes occur when he is intoxicated with alcohol (The Fisher King 00:15:40). Jack even attempts suicide because of not being able to continue thinking about the shooting and his personal role in it. He sometimes feels detached from others, struggles to maintain a close relationship with his romantic partner, has difficulty falling asleep, and experiences outbursts of anger. These are the main symptoms of PTSD in Jack Lucas.
Intoxication Delirium
The second option for Jack that does not exclude PTSD but can instead be caused by it is substance intoxication delirium, coded as 291.0. According to the classification, this condition includes disturbances of consciousness and cognitive changes that prevent the individual from concentrating and being aware of the environment (“Diagnostic Criteria for Substance Intoxication Delirium”). Additionally, this intoxication results in language disturbance and disorientation, and Jack gets into dangerous situations, such as when two young men try to set him on fire.
During this situation, and also when Parry saves him and invites him to join his friends, Jack cannot properly formulate his thoughts and explain himself precisely because of being intoxicated. He experiences the same disorientation and reacts improperly when attempting to work at the video store (The Fisher King 00:09:30-00 :). This state lasts only for a short period of time, and Jack acts differently when he is not drunk.
Narcissistic Personality Disorder
Lastly, there is a disorder that manifests in the movie before the traumatic events. Jack potentially has narcissistic personality disorder, which PTSD later alleviates. The symptoms of this condition with code 301.81include a lack of empathy, pervasive patterns of grandiosity, and a constant need for admiration (“Diagnostic Criteria for 301.81 Narcissistic Personality Disorder”). At the beginning of the movie, Jack cannot feel sorry for his radio listeners and is preoccupied with himself. He plans to succeed in a sitcom and believes he is the only one who deserves the part, but three years later, watching this TV show starring a different actor, he envies the actor and pities himself.
Conclusion
To draw a conclusion, Parry and John both experience adverse effects of their mental conditions that disrupt their everyday activities and make them act abnormally. After tragically losing his beloved wife, Parry develops PTSD with avoidance of memories about the stressful event and schizoaffective disorder, which causes hallucinations and delusions. Jack also experiences PTSD, as well as substance intoxication delirium that makes him disoriented, and narcissistic personality disorder that excludes empathy from his life.
Works Cited
“Diagnostic Criteria for Substance Intoxication Delirium.” BehaveNet.
“Diagnostic Criteria for 309.81 Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.” BehaveNet.
“Diagnostic Criteria for 301.81 Narcissistic Personality Disorder.” BehaveNet.
“Diagnostic Criteria for 295.70 Schizoaffective Disorder.” BehaveNet.
The Fisher King. Directed by Terry Gilliam, TriStar Pictures, 1991.