Out of Mind

Remember when people used phone books? My father, John Bradford, would often receive calls for the only other John Bradford who lived in Ottawa. It seems both knew of the other, by reputation only, and did their best to ferry the correct callers to the correct number. The other John Bradford was a psychiatrist for the criminally insane, my mother told me. She would often worry about my fathers identity being mistaken, and a violent offender coming to our house.

Dr. John Bradford, it turns out, is prominently featured in OUT OF MIND, OUT OF SIGHT: INSIDE BROCKVILLE PSYCH. Brockville Psych is a facility that houses the criminally insane, individuals who have committed violent crimes and have been found NCR, or Not Criminally Responsible. The mystery and stigma that surrounds these people fuelled my mothers fear when I was a little girl, and I’m sure some of that fear still exists today in many Canadians. Director John Kastner delves into the lives of the colourful and tragic characters who occupy this secure facility, attempting to rebuild their lives and regain control of their severe mental illness. Rather than encouraging that fear that many of us hold, the patients that inhabit Brockville Psych are often shown to be funny, sweet, kind-hearted, complicated, and most of all tragic. Kastner eases us into each person’s story masterfully, allowing the audience to first see them as a complex and meaningful person before revealing their reasons for being there.

Carole, a disabled middle-aged woman with severe schizophrenia and suicidal tendencies, often behaves like a very affectionate 7-year-old girl. She loves her teddy bear, she hugs the nurses, and she likes to help out by cleaning up and shining the bannisters. We then learn the reasons for her committal: assaulting half a dozen people, including police officers. She has also jumped off a balcony in a botched suicide attempt, leading to orthopaedic injuries. Her teddy bear is often clung to her chest as she screams that she wants to die. She has no family (that staff know of), and yet claims to hear her sister talking to her all the time.

“I know her temper,” she says. Again, we hear the voice of a little girl.

But she isn’t a little girl. She, in fact, is in a relationship of sorts with fellow patient Sal, a lonely but charismatic schizophrenic who was found NCR after assaulting his mother so violently that she fell into a coma. Sal wants to be everybody’s friend, and is apparently a hit with the ladies of the ward. Carole has repeated altercations with Justine, who’s Borderline Personality Disorder causes her to cut her arm so often that it is mangled with scar tissue. Justine seems to relish the drama that is caused whens he makes advances on Sal. But even Justine, forever the instigator, has a tragic story of her own.

The central and most compelling character of this film, however,  is Michael Stewart. Michael has been in the facility for many years; in fact, he knows it so well that he gives the camera crew a guided tour. He seems incredibly stable, even normal, but you can tell that he is keeping something dark at bay. Michael has what I would called the definition of “sad eyes”. His family comes to see him often, and you feel something unspoken between them. Michael’s crime is most definitely the most horrific and violent of all of the other patients we meet, and yet when it was revealed to me all I felt was crushing sadness for him and his family.

Michael’s brother puts it well when he says that Michael is a victim too, because his severe schizophrenia caused him to do things he never wanted to do. The disease took control of his life.

He doesn’t even need to forgive Michael, for Michael isn’t responsible in his eyes. Michael didn’t do it. “I don’t need to forgive someone for having cancer. Michael has a disease.”

Michael’s biggest struggle, now that his mental illness is stabilized, is finding a way to forgive himself for what he has done and move on with his life. Dr. Bradford and the staff try to encourage him to move out of the facility and into the community. But Michael’s second biggest hurdle seems to be trusting himself enough to agree to finally leave the facility, and believing that he can salvage some semblance of a normal life.

We’ve all heard the public outcry directed at violent offenders who use the “insanity defence”. Many people don’t believe mental disease to be a legitimate excuse for violent crime. And yet, after watching OUT OF MIND, OUT OF SIGHT, I will be very reluctant to share that view in the future. The empathy that this film evoked from me was so pure, so powerful, that it’s impossible not to change your perspective.

It’s no surprise that OUT OF MIND, OUT OF SIGHT was a massive hit at this years Hot Docs Festival, and was given the Best Canadian Feature Documentary Award. Tickets are hard to come by, and rush lines are literally around the block, but you’re in luck: the film will make it’s television premiere on TVO (which co-produced the film) May 7th at 9pm, followed by encore presentations May 8th at 10pm and May 11th at 11pm. (official site)

If you would like to try to rush the sold-out final showing of OUT OF MIND, OUT OF SIGHT at Hot Docs, there is a screening Sunday, May 4th at TIFF Bell Lightbox 2 at 1pm. 

For more from Kate Bradford, visit her site: www.katehasablog.com