Flight Movie Analysis

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Flight and Substance Use Disorders
In the film, Flight, William “Whip” Whitaker is an airline pilot. Whitaker is depicted as having a substance use disorder (SUD) and more specifically, an alcohol use disorder (AUD). This paper discusses: the film, AUDs, the way Flight depicts Whitaker’s AUDs, an interpretation of the film’s depiction, and possible treatment for Whitaker.
Film Summary Whitaker, an airline pilot, piloted a flight that ended in a crash due to mechanical failure and led to the death of six people on board. The landing was considered a miracle shot by many, but the cause of the crash still needed investigation. There is an investigation into whose fault it was the plane crashed, which is a problem for Whittaker because though …show more content…

Some people only drink on the weekend, or just not at work. Some people attempt to hide their alcohol abuse while others demand company, or anything in between these various elements. Alcohol abuse or addiction is defined as an individual who a) needs to use alcohol every day to function, b) makes attempts to limit use to specific time with periods of sobriety between incidents of heavy drinking, c) have “binges” of continuous use for long periods of time interspersed with the aforementioned periods of abstinence, d) use in excess of the medical and social norms (Doweiko, 2015). To be diagnosed with an AUD requires the individual to meet 2 of eleven criteria laid out by the DSM-5 within a year, then severity is assessed on the basis of how many criteria are met (NIMH, n.d.). Severity is assessed as mild meeting 2-3 criteria, moderate meeting 4 to 5, and severe meaning meeting 6 or more criteria. These eleven criteria include factors such as having drank longer than intended, reduced interest in activities, increased risk behavior, and other factors that look at how drinking has affected you socially (NIAA, …show more content…

Overall, I think the film did a fairly good job in not stigmatizing the disorder. Whitaker is depicted as a smart, courageous man whose life has been taken over by his AUD over time. He is multidimensional, and the viewer, while probably being highly critical of him, also understands that he has a problem. When Whitaker was confronting people, trying to convince them not talk about his alcohol use on the plane, they all recognized that despite the fact that he had been drinking no one else would have been able to land the plane so skillfully. While balancing this I think the film did a good job of showing how hard it is to quit. This is especially in a situation like Whitaker’s where it would be almost impossible to find help without simultaneously claiming guilt in terms of the fault of the plane

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