Benny & Joon Case

Benny & Joon

The movie Benny and Joon is about a brother a brother and sister who lives together since their parents died in a car accident when they were young. Even when they are gown up, Joon still lives with Benny. She does not have a job but Benny works at his auto repair shop. Joon cannot live on her own because she has schizophrenia, a mental disorder where she hears voices and thinks that someone is plotting to hurt her. Benny life is often put at a halt because he has to take care of Joon. He doesn't want to send her to a group house because he is very protective of her. As a result, his social life had become very limited. Besides his work, he may play cards with his friends once in awhile. Of course, while he is still supervising Joon. Benny's life is restricted in many different ways. A nice lady asks Benny out for dinner one day but he has to politely decline her offer because he is worried about Joon. Since Joon scared away her house keeper, he has to make sure she does not run out and cause any trouble because of her mental disorder. Another example of how Benny is deprived of a social life is that he has to pass up the opportunity to go to a baseball game. He won a ticket during a card game but decides he should not go because he fears that Joon cannot take care of herself. He had already received a call from the police when Joon disrupted society while she was out in her snorkeling mask and ping pong paddle, which is an example of her schizophrenia. Another way Joon's mental illness had affected Benny was that he could not have a worry-free date with Ruthie. Benny was obligated on returning home to check if Joon was fine. He temporarily ruins his relationship with Ruthie by telling her that things are complicated. Benny's stress is also shown when he talks to Joon's psychologist. She suggests that Joon should go to a group house to lift the burden off of Benny. He considers this option but later on he slowly lets go of Joon so she could live with Sam. Now without his sister, who has schizophrenia, to worry about, he can live his life.