Psychology

The movie A Beautiful Mind is the story of John Forbes Nash Jr., a math genius, an economist and a Carnegie scholar who graduated at Princeton University.  Nash received the Nobel Memorial Prize in 1994 for his contribution to economics, this despite having been debilitated by paranoid schizophrenia since his teaching days.

The portrayal of the main character, John Nash, by actor Russel Crowe has been widely acclaimed as very realistic.  As stated in one movie review  Crowe seems to be able to make any film great just by his mere presence but it is his acting ability that highlights A Beautiful Mind (Oliver).  The story is indeed amazing especially in the way the mathematical genius of Nash is presented -- how as a student he could work for days on math equations in the library and write them on the glass windows, how he could see common realities in terms of math equations and after he graduated, how the numbers just seemed to leap at him as he searched for the codes during his special assignments to the Pentagon.

The portrayal by Crowe was effective because it established the type of individual Nash was as well as the level of intelligence he had which was incomparable to many.  And then when the delusions of Nash started, it transported the viewer into the world of mental delusions that Nash himself went through.
Crowe as Nash was excellent because the transformation from the savvy, confident, math expert to the paranoid, nervous, apprehensive character was gradually illustrated in Crowes accurate rendering of Nashs persona.  He soon becomes a strange individual as he speaks of conspiracies, spies, codes, Russians and it is soon discovered that he has done a roomful of article clippings where he has underscored numbers which he denoted as linked to secret codes, plans, places and shady characters.  Crowes portrayal is particularly convincing, especially when he is first brought to the psychiatric hospital for treatment.  Nash mistakes the psychiatrist Dr. Rosen to be part of the Russian spies sent out to neutralize him for working with Parcher, hence his initial mistrust.  The acting prowess depicted by Crowe is very intense as he presents various phases of his paranoia like cursing his room mate Charles as he is brought to his room at the psychiatric ward, speaking softly to his wife because there might be people listening and looking for the implant on his left arm without feeling any pain despite the gaping wound, and blood splattered all over his clothes.   

One negative point of the movie is the inclusion of confusing scenes about Nashs hallucinations which are interspersed within the story.  The viewer is then left hanging with these questions  1) when did the illusions start  2) what possibly triggered them  3) how come nobody noticed that Nashs room mate was imaginary  4) why did nobody question Nashs activities even if they were classified  and 5) didnt the university have control over their faculty members, who should be first and foremost be accountable to them  These are some questions raised by the movie.

John Nash had to undergo insulin shock therapy which was the commonly used treatment at that time.  This was usually conducted 5 times in a week for two consecutive weeks.  Aside from this, Nash was given anti-psychotic drugs to be taken at home to prevent the progression of his ailment.  In the movie, Dr. Rosen makes use of the psychodynamic approach where there is an active and open relationship between the therapist and the client.  Behavioral therapy was also practiced with Nash being made to undergo exposure therapy sessions allowing Nash to see his imaginary friends  Charles, William Parcher and Marcy.  Because humanistic therapy holds a hopeful, constructive view of human beings and the individuals substantial capacity to be self-determining (Humanistic Therapy), Dr. Rosen gently guided John into realizing that everything he had been seeing were merely products of his imagination and not seen by others.  He talked to John patiently that not taking his anti-psychotic drugs have caused his relapse into another state of paranoia which almost put his family in grave danger, hence, John should not let these circumstances to happen again.

One noticeable thing about the movie is the stigma which is attached to Nashs illness.  After he was diagnosed as a schizophrenic, Johns very few friends even became fewer as not all of them came to visit John when he was recovering.  It was just fortunate that he was still given the chance to go back to the university to teach and do what he had always loved doing  math and math equations.  Nevertheless, it was still an uphill battle for Nash as students mimicked the particular way he walked, and people often stared at him because of all the past behavior he had been notoriously identified with. 
Some possible brain-behavior connections are Nashs high intellect, peculiar way of looking at things, uncommon perception of common phenomena which can be correlated to his aversion for people, preference for solitude and not being too comfortable around people.