Cognitive Disabilities in Movies and Television

Related: Dyslexia, ADHD, More TagsRelated Conditions, Autism Movies, Fewer Tags

by Merely Me
Wednesday, September 30, 2009

As time goes on it seems that both television and film are depicting more characters who have a wide range of disabilities including:  Learning disabilities, Autism Spectrum Disorders, and/or Mental Retardation.  As disabilities have become more mainstream so have the entertainment industry's attempts to portray members of these special populations.  I have begun a quest to create a growing list of movies and TV shows depicting characters who have a disability.  I will share the limited list I have compiled up to present time and also give you a few highlights of my favorite characters, TV shows, and movies from this list.  I am hoping that you can help add to this list in the comment section.  My goal is to see as many of these shows and movies as I can.

Know that I searched high and low to create this list.  I scoured the Internet.  I looked at many movie lists from various movie sites.  I even asked my teen-age son to look at his anime collection and cartoon films for suggestions.  As with all media, some shows and films do an excellent job of representing people with disabilities and some simply promote stereotypes.  Please use discretion when viewing any television show or movie.  Not all people with autism, for example, are just like "Rain Man."  People with disabilities are all unique. 

One of my favorite TV shows which has gone off the air was Boston Legal.  On this comedic lawyer show there was a character called Jerry Espenson who plays a lawyer who has Asperger's Syndrome.  Jerry's Asperger's and how he dealt with it was a theme for many shows.  In one of my favorite episodes involving Jerry, he and a colleague are at a coffee shop ordering muffins to go.  Jerry has some Tourette's like quirks which make him hop and make popping noises with his mouth.  A rude patron makes fun of Jerry calling him Doctor Demento.  Jerry then throws a muffin at the perpetrator's head.  For all people who have been bullied or victimized for being different, you wanted to root for Jerry's muffin throwing behavior despite its obvious inappropriateness.  I felt that the character of Jerry on Boston Legal was a fair and accurate portrayal of someone trying to deal with what would be considered a high functioning version of an autism spectrum disorder.

Another TV show I have grown fond of over recent months is "House" starring actor Hugh Laurie, who plays the cranky Doctor Gregory House.  In a repeat episode (Season three, Episode four:  "Lines in the Sand.") parents bring in their autistic boy to be treated by House due to his mysterious symptoms.  The boy cannot speak and must use picture icons to communicate.  Trying to find the cause of the boy's symptoms they investigate his home and even backyard to find if he ingested any sort of toxin from his environment.  House finally cracks the case when the boy keeps pointing to a photo of his sandbox.  He had eaten sand which was contaminated causing his life threatening but now curable (since they discovered the cause) symptoms.  I was personally riveted to this episode as my autistic son has also used pictures to communicate and loves to try to eat sand. House portrays his usual callous self when he speaks of the boy as "nothing a parent wants."  Yet House does make a special connection with this boy, despite his outward rudeness.  By the end of the episode the boy gives House his beloved Game Boy as a token of their friendship. Needless to say I was wiping away a few tears.