A Beautiful Mind (film) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids A Beautiful Mind |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Ron Howard |
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| Written by | Akiva Goldsman |
| Starring |
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| Music by | James Horner |
| Cinematography | Roger Deakins |
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| Release date(s) | December 13, 2001 (Beverly Hills premiere) December 21, 2001 (United States) |
| Running time | 135 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $58 million |
| Money made | $316.8 million |
A Beautiful Mind is a 2001 American biographical drama film. It was directed by Ron Howard. The movie tells the story of John Nash, a brilliant mathematician. He won the Nobel Prize in Economics.
The film shows Nash's life from his early days as a student at Princeton University. It explores his amazing ideas and his struggles with a serious mental health condition. Russell Crowe plays John Nash. The movie also stars Jennifer Connelly as his wife, Alicia.
A Beautiful Mind was very successful. It earned over $313 million worldwide. It also won four Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Jennifer Connelly won Best Supporting Actress for her role.
Contents
What is the movie about?
John Nash's Early Life
The story begins in 1947. John Nash arrives at Princeton University as a talented math student. He wants to find a truly original idea. He meets other smart students and his roommate, Charles Herman.
Nash gets an idea while watching his classmates try to talk to a group of women. He thinks that working together can lead to better results than everyone acting for themselves. This idea becomes his famous "Nash equilibrium" theory. He publishes an article about it. This helps him get a job at MIT.
Secret Work and Challenges
In 1953, Nash is asked to help the the Pentagon. He uses his mind to break secret codes from enemies. He gets bored with teaching at MIT. Soon, a mysterious man named William Parcher recruits him. Parcher gives Nash a secret mission. Nash must look for hidden patterns in newspapers to stop a Soviet plot.
Nash becomes very focused on this secret work. He starts to believe he is being followed. He delivers his findings to a secret mailbox.
Love and Difficulties
One of Nash's students, Alicia Larde, asks him to dinner. They fall in love and get married. Nash's life becomes more difficult. He starts to see people who are not real. These include Parcher, Charles, and Charles's niece, Marcee.
A psychiatrist named Dr. Rosen tells Alicia that Nash has a serious mental health condition. He explains that Charles, Marcee, and Parcher are not real. They are part of Nash's imagination. Nash gets treatment, but he secretly stops taking his medication. This makes his visions return.
Overcoming Challenges
Alicia finds out Nash has stopped his medication. She sees him acting strangely. He accidentally puts their baby in a running bathtub, thinking Charles is watching. Alicia tries to leave with the baby. Nash fights with his visions. He then realizes that his visions never age. This helps him understand that they are not real.
Nash decides to try to live with his condition without medication. Alicia chooses to stay and support him. He returns to Princeton. He learns to ignore his visions over many years. By the late 1970s, he is able to teach again.
A Nobel Prize Winner
In 1994, John Nash receives the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. He gets it for his amazing work on game theory. His fellow professors honor him. He dedicates the prize to his wife, Alicia. As he leaves the ceremony, he sees his visions one last time. But he simply glances at them and moves on.
Who are the main actors?
- Russell Crowe as John Nash
- Jennifer Connelly as Alicia Nash
- Ed Harris as William Parcher
- Christopher Plummer as Dr. Rosen
- Paul Bettany as Charles Herman
- Adam Goldberg as Richard Sol
- Josh Lucas as Martin Hansen
- Anthony Rapp as Bender
- Jason Gray-Stanford as Ainsley Neilson
- Judd Hirsch as Hellinger
- Austin Pendleton as Thomas King
- Vivien Cardone as Marcee Herman
- Killian, Christian, and Daniel Coffinet-Crean as Baby
Making the Movie
How the Film Was Developed
Producer Brian Grazer read about John Nash in a magazine. He immediately wanted to make a movie about his life. He brought the idea to director Ron Howard.
Akiva Goldsman wrote the screenplay. He wanted the audience to experience Nash's reality. So, viewers don't realize that some characters are not real until later in the film. Ron Howard asked Goldsman to focus on the love story between Nash and his wife. Alicia's support was very important for Nash.
Expert Help and Special Effects
A math professor, Dave Bayer, helped with the math shown in the film. He made sure the equations were interesting and fit Nash's character. Bayer even had a small role in the movie.
Greg Cannom was in charge of the makeup. He made the actors look older as the story progressed. He used special silicone makeup to make it look like real skin. This helped Russell Crowe look more like the real John Nash.
James Horner wrote the music for the film. He wanted the music to show how Nash's ideas changed and grew. He chose singer Charlotte Church for the soprano vocals. He wanted a pure, clear voice that still sounded human.
Filming Locations and Choices
Most of the movie was filmed in the order of the story. The crew visited the Princeton University campus three times. Ron Howard decided that Nash's visions should first be heard, then seen. This helped the audience understand Nash's point of view.
The filmmakers also created a special effect for Nash's "aha!" moments. They used a flash of light over an object or person. This showed when Nash had a brilliant new idea. Some scenes were filmed at Fairleigh Dickinson University and Manhattan College.
Choosing the Actors
Russell Crowe was chosen to play John Nash. For the role of Alicia Nash, many actresses were considered. These included Rachel Weisz, Charlize Theron, and Julia Ormond. In the end, Jennifer Connelly got the part.
Differences from Real Life
The movie A Beautiful Mind is based on a true story. However, some parts were changed for the film. The filmmakers wanted to tell a good story. They said they did not intend to show every detail of Nash's life exactly as it happened.
For example, the real John Nash did not have visual visions. The characters Charles Herman, Marcee Herman, and William Parcher were created for the movie. These characters helped show Nash's mental health challenges in a visual way. The real Nash only heard voices.
Also, Nash's mental health challenges started later in his life than shown in the film. The movie also does not mention some of his other important math work. The "pen ceremony" tradition at Princeton shown in the film is not real. The movie also suggests Nash took medication later in life, but he actually stopped taking it from 1970 onwards. These changes were made to help tell the story in a clear way for the audience.
Home Video Release
A Beautiful Mind was released on VHS and DVD in North America on June 25, 2002. The DVD included extra features like deleted scenes. The film was also released on Blu-ray on January 25, 2011.
Soundtrack
See Also
In Spanish: A Beautiful Mind para niños
- List of American films of 2001
- List of films about mathematicians
- Mental illness in films
