In no particular order:
1. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)
2. Awakenings (1990)
3. K-PAX (2001)
4. House of Fools (2002)
5. The Snake Pit (1948)
6. Twelve Monkeys (1995)
7. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
8. Shutter Island (2010)
9. Girl, Interrupted (1999)
10. Session 9 (2001)
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Also great, thought-provoking reads: ‘Madness: A Brief History’ (Roy Porter); ‘History of Madness’ (Michel Foucault); ‘Asylums’ (Erving Goffman).
dbmoviesblog 
I haven’t seen these all, but the ones I’ve seen are some of the best films around. Although it doesn’t stand to reason more made in the same genre would be as equally effective, but I agree they are generally great to watch.
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Bra..f-ing…vo. I came here expecting a lot of the films you listed, but I was really hoping to see Session 9…and sure enough, there it is. Again, bravo. Great list!
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Thanks! I don’t recall now who exactly recommended me to watch ‘Session 9’ (someone from the wordpress community), but I am so glad that I have.
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I just queued Session 9 on Netflix! YAY! 🙂
Great list! Shutter Island was pretty awesome and Silence of the Lambs is downright epic! 🙂
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Cuckoos Nest is one if my all time favourites and thoroughly deserves its place. Great to see House if Fools mentioned, though. It’s been a while but it’s a great little film.
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Nice list– nothing beats One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest….
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Thanks! Very true, looking at the list, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest seems miles ahead of all the others, in both the quality and subject matter covered.
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Great list! One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and Girl, Interrupted are two of my favourites.
Angelina Jolie and Jack Nicholson are remarkable in their respected films.
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Thank you! Yes, Jolie definitely deserved her Oscar’s win for that role. I should just remain silent on Nicholson’s performance – I simply consider it one of the greatest ever.
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Meant to comment on your post earlier! I am so happy to see The Snake Pit and Girl, Interrupted on the list. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest is such a classic as is Silence of the Lambs (Two out of three of the only movies to win the five major Academy Awards!). I have to check out Session 9, K-PAX, and House of Fools. Overall, there are so so many excellent movies that discuss/portray mental illness.
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