Mad to Be Normal
Psychiatry during the 1960s was quite different, as it provoked widespread debate about the application of the theories of psychiatrist R. Ling to patients whose cases were proven to be psychiatric patients, because he had completely different experiences in this field.
26 May 1981, England, UK
18 April 1971, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland, UK
26 October 1970, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
29 December 1972, Bath, England, UK
1978, London, England, UK
April 07, 2017
David Tennant is on pugnacious, mercurial and beady-eyed form in this very interesting and absorbing film.
April 03, 2017
Tennant's performance is strong, and he gives energy to a script that jolts in different directions looking for focus.
April 09, 2017
There's plenty of jazzy paisley shirts, flamboyant velvet suits and on-the-nose music cues to denote its psychedelic 1960s setting, but these elements do little to soften Laing's eye-raisingly invasive and possibly inappropriate approach to his patients.
April 06, 2017
Tennant is as watchable as ever, resplendent in migraine-inducing psychedelic shirts, walking a fine line between radical visionary and arrogant chancer.
April 07, 2017
It's elevated above bog-standard biopic fare by the performances.
April 03, 2017
Mad to Be Normal boils a fascinating subject down into a slightly clunky, simplistic bio-drama.
May 04, 2018
A thought provoking biopicture focusing on the countercultural life and work of the controversial Scottish psychiatrist R. D. Laing.
April 07, 2017
Mad to be Normal's pieces don't quite fit, but like Laing himself, it's never boring.
April 06, 2017
In this touchingly funny, quietly heartbreaking biopic, David Tennant excels as the complex and flawed Laing.
April 10, 2017
David Tennant [plays the role] with conviction and a nice Glaswegian drawl, but the film is a dodgy business that makes things up -- including a pregnant girlfriend (Elisabeth Moss) -- for no good reason.
April 06, 2017
Tennant is so commanding you can't tear your eyes away from him.
October 11, 2017
It's fascinating and particularly well cast but, despite Tennant's watchable efforts, the decision to concentrate on the Kingsley Hall years rather than more of Laing's life proves a frustrating one.
