The Film
The film begins with private Suzy and the fellow
soldiers from her unit returning home by train, where she is
welcomed by family and friends at the house she shares with
husband, Mark, who is also a soldier who has previously served in
Iraq, and their daughter, Cass. At first Cass is unwilling to
interact with her mother and Suzy seems able to cope with this
behaviour, until it becomes clear that all is not well in Suzy’s
perception of the world. In the context of some hooliganism in
their impoverished residential area, Suzy starts to develop
paranoia that eventually becomes extreme. Her hypervigilance for
potential dangers is brilliantly portrayed, and permeates
throughout the majority of the film, as she becomes especially
fixated on protecting her daughter. Unable to get close to her
husband and unable to sleep properly, Suzy starts to drink alcohol
in greater amounts.
When her sister invites Suzy and her soldier
colleague, Paul, to attend the primary school where she teaches, in
order to talk to the children about their experiences of war, Suzy
recounts the memory that is haunting her. This revelation explains
the origins of the guilt that Suzy is feeling and the flashbacks
she is suffering as well as providing an understanding of the
importance, for her, of protecting her daughter. As Suzy’s symptoms
of paranoia, flashbacks, hypervigilance, loss of libido and
depression increase, her relationship with husband Mark becomes
ever more strained. Her absence of libido is the trigger for Mark’s
increasing frustration that results in him suspecting that Suzy has
been unfaithful to him. His mental health begins to suffer and his
underlying angry personality traits are revealed, with serious
consequences.
In the final scenes, when Suzy flees with her
daughter and a gun that she has taken from the barracks for
protection, the serious nature of her condition becomes even more
apparent. I do not wish to describe the ending here, but suspect
that it will raise your heart rate.
Relevance to the field of Mental Health
As a contemporary portrait of post-traumatic stress disorder,
In Our Name offers a perfect platform to discuss the
diagnosis and management of the condition, with reference to Suzy’s
symptoms and behaviour, and the effect that her condition has on
her close family. The film also depicts the difficulties that some
servicemen may have in seeking help, because they feel doing so may
jeopardise their chances of promotion. For a general
introduction to PTSD, the Royal College of
Psychiatrists has a good factsheet, but for more information about
PTSD related to military combat, the charity Combat
Stress also has lots of information, including some
case
studies.
The other topical issue that is raised by In
Our Name is that of gun possession and mental illness. There
are two aspects of this issue that could be further explored
alongside a viewing of the film. The first is the topic of mentally
ill soldiers carrying guns and the second concerns the process of
licensing guns to the general public who may have had or may
develop a mental disorder. For the first topic, I would recommend a
reading of the recent article published in Advances in Psychiatric
Treatment, in September 2011, by Peter McAllister, Neil Greenberg
& Max Henderson entitled: Occupational psychiatry in the
armed forces: should depressed soldiers carry guns? (vol17,
350-356). The abstract
of this article is freely available. This article describes the
work of the UK Defence Mental Health Services in detail. With
regard to the second issue, most people in the UK will be aware of
the recent
tragic events on New Years Day 2012, in which a middle aged
man, legitimately licensed to hold 6 firearms, with previous mental
health problems, shot dead his partner, her sister and her niece.
This incident has highlighted the growing debate about how gun
licences should be issued and then monitored. The medical
profession currently have no statutory role in the process, but the
BMA is involved in discussions with the Association of Chief Police
Officers about this matter. A statement of the current interim
guidance for doctors on this matter is available at the
BMA
website. The film could provide a good starting point
for a debate on this very important issue.
Perhaps the fact that the film’s ending does not
resolve the outcomes for all of the main characters offers an even
better opportunity to discuss their possible futures. What is left
in no doubt, however, is the detrimental effects that serving in a
war can have on an individual’s mental health and on their close
family relationships and it highlights the importance of having
appropriate care available whenever it is needed.
• More information about In Our Name
is available at IMDB and here is the
link to the official
trailer.
• The DVD can be purchased at
amazon.co.uk.
• Minds on Film is written by consultant
psychiatrist Dr Joyce Almeida.
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