The gist of the movie is about a gifted, homeless and schizophrenic musician, Nathaniel Ayers, and an LA Times columnist, Steve Lopez. The movie is basically about how the two of them become friends.

To me, and perhaps it’s because of the fact that I know what it’s like to know someone who has schizophrenia, the movie to me felt very real. And there were several moments when I had tears springing to my eyes. I was the only one sniffling in that theater. I almost felt like an idiot. But I have a good excuse damnit.

The movie helped me see how frightening having schizophrenia is. When David was diagnosed with it, it came out of nowhere. One moment he’s got Asperger’s and whatnot, and the next thing I know, he’s in the psych ward for trying to kill himself because a voice in his head told him that he had to. He had been seeing and hearing voices for a while, and there was no change in his behavior at all; we had no idea when the onset happened. It was a shock to me at the very least.

I remember going to the hospital with my parents to see him, and he seemed so terrified, and my heart twisted just seeing him. He looked like a lost boy. And watching this movie made me realize just how scared he probably was. I mean, it’s got to be terrifying; hearing voices and seeing things that aren’t real, and not knowing what’s real and what’s fake.

Personally, I loved this movie, and I recommend it to another even remotely interested in it. I appreciated how they depicted the mental disorder.