The Trials of Youth and Mental Illness are Thoughtfully Captured in ‘Words on Bathroom Walls’

Alci Rengifo

The defining theme of teen movies is insecurities. Never do our most private details feel so threatening as in adolescence. But what if your source of self-doubt is quite literally out of your control, as in a particular health issue? “Words on Bathroom Walls” stands out in the Young Adult genre by featuring a character grappling with mental illness. Yes, this film inevitably features young love, pestering parents and looming school authoritarians. But Adam (Charlie Plummer) is not merely facing the challenges of being unpopular, or competing with the jocks. He is schizophrenic, and suddenly simple options, passing high school moments, become an overwhelmingly threatening terrain.

As the film begins, Adam is in the middle of his senior year with ambitions of going to culinary school. Cooking is his passion, and he’s a natural talent. But a psychotic episode in chemistry class not only confirms a diagnosis of his mental illness, it also results in Adam being expelled. His mother, Beth (Molly Parker) and her boyfriend Paul (Walton Goggins), seriously care about Adam and enroll him at a Catholic academy, while getting him a touted new medication. For Adam the medication is almost a threat to his own, particular “normal.” His days and nights are plagued by voices and three hallucinations in particular: A bat-wielding tough guy (Lobo Sebastian), an optimistic, ethereal girl, Rebecca (AnnaSophia Robb), and Joaquin (Devon Bostick), a constantly horny teen always in a bathrobe. A chance encounter brings Adam into the orbit of Maya (Taylor Russell), who prides herself in being the school valedictorian, a prime example of academic excellence, who also writes rich kids’ essays for a price.  Maybe Maya can inspire Adam to discipline himself to take his meds, but their side effects pose yet another challenge.

Following a typical pattern, “Words on Bathroom Walls” is based on a YA bestseller. The source novel by Julia Walton was nominated for several major awards in its genre and it’s easy to see why. Like the book, the movie treats the theme of schizophrenia with an approach rarely seen even in more adult-oriented fare. Director Thor Freudenthal is attuned to how to approach themes of youth with genuine empathy. His previous credits include “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” and “Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters.” He and writer Nick Naveda don’t treat Adam like some pity party character. He is a sharp, witty person whose experience has made him more sensitive to certain life realities. Like any illness, he has little control over what has happened to him, but it imposes new hardships on the already tough process of growing up. The material understands how being “different” can hang like a stone around your neck in high school, where everyone is judged quickly. Adam decides to keep his schizophrenia secret from Maya and everyone else is universally relatable, in the sense that many people would rather hide their most private selves from the world out of fear. In one of the most powerful monologues in the film, Adam looks at the camera and describes how having schizophrenia sets you apart from others who have conditions like cancer. There is no Make a Wish Foundation for schizophrenics, per Adam, it feels like people would rather avoid or hide you, not grant your wishes.

While “Words on Bathroom Walls” delivers on some of the more heartwarming elements we expect in YA films, like sparks beginning to kindle between Adam and Maya, or endearing mother-son moments, it also dares to go darker. The filmmakers never water down schizophrenia for sheer schlock. Within the style of this genre, they take it very seriously. In a technique seen in films like “A Beautiful Mind,” the voices and imaginary people Adam sees and hears are expressed through the bat-wielder, Rebecca and Joaquin. But they offer little comic relief, even when they crack jokes, like Joaquin giving Adam tips on first kisses. Instead, they feel like the weight of Adam’s brain disconnecting him from reality, plaguing him with constant moods of feeling threatened. His delusions are carefully designed to convey the intrusion of schizophrenia on daily life. Sitting in class could mean an open door emitting an ominous voice, a meeting with the school’s Mother Superior results in Adam trying to keep to himself that the entire office looks set on fire. Medication helps, and it seems like Adam can develop a relationship with Maya with an ease of mind, until side effects begin to kick in, like muscle spasms. Suddenly the challenge to just fit in becomes more daunting. Images convey starker messages, like Adam on a bus ride home noticing the homeless man nearby, ranting and shouting at nothing. Will that be him in a few years? Charlie Plummer, who is one of the great young actors who can express vulnerability (check him out in the underrated “Lean on Pete”), carries the story with a performance of frustration and empathy. Adam is very likeable, but he also has the baggage of deep insecurities caused by his condition, which he covers up with snappy remarks tinged with understandable cynicism. 

Within the sphere of pop entertainment, YA films, like some of the Marvel movies, have made more of an effort at diversity than other genres. Issues of class, race and health are explored with a light yet inclusive touch. Maya has details of her own identity to hide, which Adam finds out about when he goes looking for her house. Beth is a great mom, but has a breaking point, and Paul only seems like a stereotypical, intrusive boyfriend on the surface. Andy Garcia appears as Father Patrick, who oversees confessions and mass for the school. In another time, or another movie, he might have guided Adam towards spiritual enlightenment. But here Adam challenges him to some strong debates about right and wrong. Father Patrick offers few easy or even satisfying answers, because there are none. Even the way prom is done in this movie goes against what we would expect. YA movies are beginning to discover that in real life, moments that are meant to be picture perfect can easily fall apart.

Adam’s journey is a strong film representation of someone dealing with schizophrenia, and like the better stories of this type, it can speak to all viewers in different ways. We all have life situations out of our control, and as much as we try to fit in, it’s best to be honest, even in a cruel world that lacks understanding at times. “Words on Bathroom Walls” takes its title from the rebellious, blunt, crude graffiti Adam finds in his new school’s bathroom. This is a rather endearing movie about a condition, letting someone you care about into your most sensitive truths, and the endurance test of growing up with gifts and curses.

“Words on Bathroom Walls” releases Aug. 21 in select cities.