Mental Hospital
Mental Hospital is a short film from 1953 released on 16mm. It is held in the Prelinger Archives collection.
Documents the case of a mental patient who is treated for schizophrenia
(paranoid type) at the Oklahoma State Hospital. Summarizes the treatment of a patient from admission to the hospital to the time of discharge. Explains the methods used in the treatment of mental diseases and stresses the value of occupational therapy in rehabilitating patients and the need for an atmosphere of calm and security.
TITLE CARD: Recognizable personages appearing in this film are not patients in a mental institution.
PARANOIA / DEPRESSION / INSTITUTIONALIZATION: Man's voice over as he is driven down a gray, snowy road. HE IS VERY PARANOID. He leans his head against the rear window. There's a close up of his eyes, then hands, then mouth. Men in dark, tweed jackets lead him into the hospital.
MEDICAL ABUSE: Nurses examine Joe. He has blood taken from his arms, a chest x-ray, and a spinal tap.
PARANOIA: Joe talks to an Oklahoman psychiatrist (with a southern accent). He says, "They're turning my wife, you know, Peg, against me. They're taking up all of her time." Joe rings his hands. The psychiatrist replies, "Why do you think they're doing you this way?" Joe answers, "Well, I've been working on this for years. They don't know it but I'm on to them."
PSYCHOLOGICAL TESTING: The narrator describes various treatments for psychological disorders, and we view these methods in action (which look somewhat barbarous to today's viewers). First there's insulin shot therapy in which a patient receives a shot (camera pans down to twitching feet), then electric shock, hydra therapy, and cold pack therapy.
stock shot: A female patient at the mental hospital dances (Isadora Duncan style) into the camera.
03:24:49 LS shot from interior of 1940s car, looking through windshield to
reveal snowy road (passenger side, wipers)
03:25:01 CU man's head against window solemnly silhouetted, face visible 03:25:08 LS interior of car pulling into parking lot; lots of 1940s cars 03:25:14 XCU left eye of man, dark 03:25:17 XCU man's nose and mouth 03:25:19 XCU man's hands 03:25:30 XCU man's sympathetic eyes, closed 03:25:50 LS 3 men in overcoats and hats escort man from car into camera
XCU TO reverse angle shot of men from behind entering building
03:26:52 CU woman's face smiling 03:26:55 CU man's face, serious expression 03:26:58 CU woman laughing 03:27:01 CU girl knitting 03:27:03 XCU shadowed face right eye, partial left nose 03:27:05 MCU woman solemnly looking, head against wall, face lit from
below, lips dark-nice
03:27:08 MS two men reflected in mirror, back of one begins to comb hair 03:27:15 CU older woman holding temples, laughing in slight hysterics 03:27:17 CU to MS, slow pan of two tired old women, TO CU of woman in
rocker to feet
03:27:33 MS pan from twitching foot of woman in wheelchair to him talking
with another old man
03:27:52 LS dark figure of man in corner sitting, people/shadows pass, he
throws down newspaper
03:28:01 LS woman nurse at bed side of man 03:28:06 LS back of two men in hats and overalls raking 03:28:12 MCU baker man loading oven 03:28:17 CU man sweating, looking about wildly with voice over:"There's a
veteran returned from service overseas"
03:28:22 CU old man, continues voice over: "and a farmer who had never set
foot out of his home county until he came here"
03:28:28 CU old man hand gripping fence looking gravely out window 03:28:32 XCU bald fat man with spectacles 03:28:43 LS woman in apron with arms outstretched 03:29:09 MS cafeteria line, people without heads 03:29:16 CU lunch trays, people pass by 03:29:20 MS large bread slicing machine TO many bread racks 03:29:28 CU two women washing greens in sink 03:29:30 CU hand operating industrial slicer TO industrial mixer (both
short)
03:29:33 MS woman checking large caldron 03:29:37 MS man, no head, unloading industrial washing machine 03:29:41 MS two woman putting aprons on washing conveyer 03:29:51 MS smoke stack tilt top to bottom with voice over: "the patients
smokestack: they seem to take personal pride in it"
03:30:12 CU machine with a lot of back and forth movement 03:30:27 LS women nurses outside hospital 03:30:51 XLS nurses, long take 03:31:16 LS man silhouetted with long fishing pole 03:31:21 LS long pan of farm 03:31:32 LS farmer plowing with horses 03:31:37 VS of houses 03:31:49 MS two men conversing, older well dressed man facing camera 03:31:57 CU nervous looking man 03:32:03 MS older man hands contract to other man 03:32:12 CU right hand signing a "Voluntary application for Admission"
form
03:32:22 MS two men in lab coats, one sitting on table, shines light into
woman's eyes To shot of woman in between two men
03:32:42 MLS court bench, two men, judge, bailiff hands him paper, judge
says:"Oh yes, how are you Fred"
03:32:57 MS two men at table in court, man says:"all right if you would
just leave me alone". Judge involuntarily commits Fred to the
state hospital
03:33:02 CU older man in suit 03:33:21 MS woman 'registering' man, headless orderly behind, man gives
her his watch
03:33:41 LS man in suit escorted by lab coated man 03:33:49 MS man in shower being bathed in shower by orderly 03:33:52 MS man being dressed by man orderly 03:33:59 MS man having blood sample taken from arm 03:34:04 MS shirtless man getting chest X-ray 03:34:09 MS woman nurse, man doctor, shirtless man having just received
spinal tap
03:34:18 MS two shots, of doctor and patient at table 03:34:53 MLS man in suit showing patient photograph 03:35:00 CU man looking at paper/photos 03:35:14 CU over shoulder of man looking at photos of peoples faces 03:35:31 LS man escorted by nurse into room full of nurses and doctors 03:35:55 MS man looking nutty, nurse in background TO two shots being
diagnosed
03:36:36 MS woman nurse beside 'Fred' man, pan down to his feet 03:36:51 MLS seven women nurses standing bedside of woman about to receive
electroshock therapy, nurse puts rubber bit into her mouth
03:36:53 CU woman with rubber bit held by nurse in her mouth with
electrodes placed on her forehead
03:37:03 CU woman with towel over her head, presumably after shock therapy
fed teapot to drink from
03:37:14 LS man strapped onto a gurney, orderly puts towel under his head 03:37:23 VS around the mental hospital grounds, man pushing laundry cart
TO man by tree, nurses in background
03:37:33 LS three women patients or nurses 03:37:44 LS woman dancing with scarf into CU of lips, beautiful! 03:38:05 CU woman smiling and twirling around 03:38:22 MS man with cigarette joins group of men sitting in circle 03:38:47 MS woman nurse administering medicine to a male patient 03:38:58 MLS man doctor with two male patients drinking medicine 03:39:19 MS man painting, shot from behind 03:39:28 MS partial silhouette of person watching movie 03:39:33 MS three men, two playing game 03:39:45 CU man shooting billiards 03:39:50 MS male patient (facing) playing ping-pong with nurse woman (back
to)
03:39:55 MS five women at table laughing 03:39:59 MS woman chewing gum under hair dryer hood, nurse patting her,
woman mouths: "just fine"
03:40:08 MS woman looking through book shelf in library 03:40:15 MS two pleasant looking women saying goodbye 03:40:22 LS people playing baseball 03:40:30 MLS people dancing 03:41:39 CU man wiping sweat from forehead, outside, cabin structure in
background (nice shot)
03:42:32 MS woman phone operator at switchboard 03:42:39 MS doctor's office, man enters greets man, woman and doctor man
who gives him a cigarette
03:42:53 CU man with cigarette being lit (nice shot) 03:42:59 MLS man showing woman and man craft work 03:43:08 MS man packing craft work into luggage 03:43:18 LS two men, woman and man with suitcase walk down stairs of
institution, shake hands
03:43:24 CU two men shaking hands 03:43:27 LS to MS, two men shaking hands 03:43:44 LS three people getting into 1940s car 03:43:56 MS 1940s car backing up to LS 03:44:09 MS from hood into car of woman driving man in back seat 03:44:12 CU two shots of man
END| Mental Hospital | |
|---|---|
| Produced by | University of Oklahoma |
Production company | University of Oklahoma |
| Distributed by | University of Oklahoma |
Release date | 1953 |
Running time | 19:00 |
| Language | English |
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