Take Shelter: Ambigous Apocalypses & Vulnerability of Men

by Tia Thomas

Mental illness is often portrayed inaccurately or incorrectly in the media and in cinema, with some of the most infamous examples being 13 Reasons Why, and even beloved classics like Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho features an emotionally, mentally unstable killer with a painfully exaggerated, borderline misinformed given its time portrayal of the “split personality”. Despite these examples, the best I hope we can do as mainstream audience is fixate on the storytelling and fictional nature of these works while also cautiously acknowledging these works being inaccurate to actual, real-life mental health disorders. Which is why it’s always intriguing to see examples of where a more insightful, sympathetic view is attempted and well executed. What I find most interesting about this film, besides its insightful portrayal of anxiety, feelings of uncertainty, and schizophrenia, was how it seemed to satirize and/or almost criticize the stereotypical set-up of the “American Dream”; Curtis has a lovely wife, daughter, a modest blue-collar type job, and a family dog, but even all these expected external satisfactions aren’t enough to conceal the internal conflicts within him and his overall struggles. “The visions are, of course, open to interpretation. Taken as a metaphor for America’s frightening approach to financial ruin, or even as a supernatural yarn worthy of Stephen King – backed by impressive effects, true-to-life nightmare sequences and David Wingo’s haunting score – Shelter is moody, riveting entertainment, a brilliant encapsulation of widespread anxieties" (Drake, 2020).

Very much like the beloved classic, Pan’s Labyrinth (2006), Take Shelter also masters the art of ambiguous ending interpretations and possibilities. I think that especially the final scene (which I saw as the highlight of the film) very intentionally uses cinematic language to leave clues supporting either interpretation. In this case, the intent is to put the audience in Curtis’s shoes. We don’t know if what we are seeing is real, a dream, a hallucination, or some combination. All we know is that Curtis is not dealing with it alone. Inside the storm shelter, Sam tells Curtis, “If you don’t open that door, nothing will change. This is what it means to stay with us.” That’s the point of the ending. Curtis doesn’t magically get better & stop having hallucinations, which would not only be a real cop-out but also insulting to the message of support and sympathy to us with mental issues; Curtis has visions that are distinctly different because now he’s starting to make progress with his family on his side. To interpret the last dream literally, even to say his family is literally seeing the storm, too, is not only a weaker ending but one unsupported by the rest of the movie, at least in my opinion. It’s also a very hopeful ending because even though he’s afflicted with these visions, with this illness, that even though he’s not going to magically and conveniently get better, and things might not be easy, his wife will be with him. She will accept what he’s going through and instead of being a part of his fear, his insecurity, his paranoia, she will give him strength, comfort, and support. That’s the arc of the movie and a big part of what sets Take Shelter apart from the poorly aged, even borderline offensive portrayal of mental illness in films like A Beautiful Mind and even Psycho, a film I adore for its brilliant cinematography, suspense, and inimitable creation of uncanny horror, is also infamously known for sensationalizing mental illnesses (particularly split personalities, parental neglect and trauma, etc.).

Overall, not only do I think Take Shelter is a solid, well-made film but it’s also a much needed reminder of how films can effectively capture and portray emotional struggles and mental illnesses in a humanizing way that isn’t just boxed in as being “psychotic” or “a lost cause”. “The worst stereotypes come out in such depictions: mentally ill individuals as incompetent, dangerous, slovenly, undeserving,” says Stephen Hinshaw, a professor of psychology at the University of California–Berkeley. “The portrayals serve to distance 'them' from the rest of 'us.’” (USNews). In a way, films like this give me more hope that films (especially those in the horror and thriller genres which are notoriously known for using mental illness as a negative problem) will better explore these types of themes and shed light to those who still remain ignorant to these sorts of things. Given how mental illness has been misrepresented in media for so long (along with others such as LGBTQ+, minorities, etc.), it’s always encouraging to get to watch and experience films like Take Shelter that also provide a visually stunning experience and raw, engaging acting.

Work Cited

Drake, Rossiter. “American Dream Gives Way to Recurring Nightmares in 'Take Shelter'.” 7x7 Bay Area, 7x7 Bay Area, 19 Mar. 2020, www.7x7.com/american-dream-gives-way-to-recurring-nightmares-in-take-shelter-1781361478.html.

“How Mental Illness Is Misrepresented in the Media.” U.S. News & World Report, U.S. News & World Report, health.usnews.com/health-news/health-wellness/articles/2015/04/16/how-mental-illness-is-misrepresented-in-the-media.