‘The King of Staten Island’ is a must see for anyone interested in mental health

Judd Apatow’s new film, The King of Staten Island, is a semi-autobiographical dramedy that follows the experiences of Scott Carlin, a 24-year-old amateur tattoo artist played by Pete Davidson. Davidson, who co-wrote the film alongside Apatow and Dave Sirus, loosely based Scott’s life off of his own, imagining what he would have been like at 24 had he not found success as a comedian.

Major themes of the movie, including Scott’s co-dependent relationship with his mother, his struggles with mental health, his battle with Crohn’s disease, and his father’s tragic untimely death are accurate to Davidson’s own life. The movie is as chaotic, hilarious, and offensive as the inner workings of Davidson’s mind, and offers valuable insight into an imperfect, tumultuous and realistic life.

By the end of the film, Davidson will feel like an old friend — someone you love and respect unconditionally, no matter how his jokes land with you or how damaged he appears.

Scott's relationship with his mother is not perfect.

Yet, there is clearly a lot of love. His mother Margie handles Scott’s impulsive actions, emotional blow ups, and co-dependency with the grace and kindness that any kid would dream of. Although she certainly makes mistakes and experiences negative emotions toward Scott, Margie offers a realistic portrayal of the complicated bond between mother and son without losing sight of what matters most. Although not always obvious to Scott, her actions seek to serve his overall well being while still honoring her own needs.

The family dynamic changes when Margie starts dating again for the first time since Scott’s father's death in the Paramount Hotel fire 17 years before (Davidson’s father also died as a firefighter, but during 9/11). The man who captures her heart, Ray, also happens to be a firefighter, leaving Scott with a sour taste in his mouth. He believes that firefighters are selfish for letting others get attached to them when there is no promise they will make it home— and he opposes his mother’s new romance from the start.

The film continues to explore the relationship between an adult son and his mother’s love interest in a realistic way. Ray oversteps his bounds multiple times throughout the film, interjecting in conversations that should truly have stayed between Margie and Scott alone. Margie certainly catches onto this eventually, but seems oblivious at first how Ray’s overinvolvement in her parenting may affect Scott. The frustration that Scott feels, as any child of a single parent who beings to date again would know, is valid. Although Scott must learn to let go of his mother and start his adult life, Margie must learn how to appropriately incorporate Ray into the lives of her grown children.

Scott’s mental illness is openly discussed.

Davidson himself has been candid about his struggles with Borderline Personality Disorder and suicidal ideations, which the audience sees portrayed through Scott’s character. Yet, the film is exceptionally valuable in that it does not attempt to label Scott’s mental illness — no diagnosis is ever mentioned, leaving his experiences and perspectives open to interpretation.

Once a diagnosis is presented, the risk of dehumanization, fear, and misinterpretation through the diagnostic lens is introduced. The choice to leave a diagnosis out of the film and instead simply present Scott’s struggles is a major win toward ending mental health stigma. Scott openly talks about his use of antidepressants and self-destructive feelings throughout the movie, yet he doesn’t appear embarrassed by his ailments, and his community of friends and family are there to support him with humour and tough love.

The audience learns about Scott’s mental state through simply observing his actions and listening to him speak on his experiences. Watching Scott drive down the highway with his eyes closed, smoke weed constantly, and struggle to navigate romantic relationships tells the audience everything they need to know. The message is clear, and the absence of a diagnosis allows the audience to relate to Scott and empathize with him on a deeper level.

Scott copes with his Crohn’s disease through humor.

Although Scott mentions his Crohn’s nonchalantly throughout the film, the underlying impact of his disease is apparent. While at a minor league baseball game with Ray, Scott is offered a hot dog — which he declines, along with a graphic explanation of how his disease would affect the digestive process.

Since Davidson himself has Crohn’s, this portrayal is a testament to his own experiences. Using graphic and gory detail to describe the pain he feels is a valid coping mechanism, which can lead to uncomfortable but understanding responses from the people surrounding him. Davidson has mentioned that he used to smoke weed to deal with the pain of Crohn’s, which is something we also see happening with Scott — although the film doesn’t explicitly state this.

Scott deals with childhood trauma in adulthood.

The death of Scott’s father when he was 7 still has a profound effect on 24-year-old Scott. Much like Davidson, who developed BPD as a result of his father’s sudden passing, Scott is mentally impacted by the loss of his dad. He explicitly states this to his sister, implying that she is only “normal” because she did not have the chance to know their dad. Scott’s newfound relationship with Ray and the New York Fire Department leads him to discover healing in ways he had never explored, and he ends up feeling more connected to his father through the experience. The more he learns about his dad, the less he idealizes him and views him through a more relatable, human lens.

Although Scott will always be impacted by his loss, he realizes that he is capable of healing and learns to let go of the past without forgetting his father.