First and foremost, the film is one of the few films that portray mental illness. A Beautiful Mind was a box office success and brought the discussion of mental illness into the spotlight. Any awareness effort aimed at raising public awareness of mental health issues is certainly positive for public perception. However, there are some features of the film that were not good for the audience's perception. In the film, Nash abandons his medication and begins to heal himself through sheer force of will. The film creates the image that not taking drugs and defeating schizophrenia with willpower alone is a serious possibility. However, in reality, not taking medication for an illness can cause serious difficulties for some people. Although Nash overcame schizophrenia without medication, not all people can. Highly intelligent people cannot simply use willpower to eradicate psychotic symptoms. The film depicts Nash as simply ignoring his schizophrenic delusions. In reality, a person cannot ignore illusions, nor distinguish between reality and illusion. The film labels drugs negatively and basically sends the message that anyone can beat them