The Black Balloon: Charlie - Essay Example

It outlines the core features and effects of autism-spectrum disorder and its effects on the psychological health and the social interaction of the victims. The plot is enhanced by use of video features such as cinematography and lighting. The movie is a sensitive and humorous analysis of a family’s way of life when disability marks the family as unique (Downs, 2007). The purpose of this paper is to discuss family functioning and coping strategies in relation to dealing with autism cases. The discussion analyzes Charlie’s character play in the film Black Balloon with highlight on the measures relevant when dealing with autism victims.

Reference will be made to various theories such as loss and Erikson’s theories. Black Balloon refers to Charlie’s nature of being unique to family and societal set-up. This in turn affects his brother and makes him feel like a Black Balloon. Thomas wishes that he may wake up one day and meet his brother being able to communicate normally. Charlie’s deficits in social capacity shine through as the audience watch his actions fuel a romance affair between Thomas and Jackie (Downs, 2007). Contrary to Charlie, Thomas always struggles to fit among students in the new school.

He always tries to be secretive about his family ties with Charlie. Charlie is never bothered by the fact that people will realize that they are brothers. One of Charlie’s achievements is that he did not distress himself about his condition and always took advantage of what life could offer without worrying about tomorrow. Additionally, Charlie’s situation sparked a romantic relationship between his brother and Jackie. This was surprising because Thomas feared that his condition could affect his social life.

Communication is a great challenge for Charlie. He only communicates with sign language, but occasionally utters single word “duh” (Downs, 2007). His use of sign language in the movie obscures the extent to