title: 'Deal with It. Name It': the diagnostic moment in film.
abstract: The moment a serious diagnosis is announced creates an important crisis for a patient, as it shifts their sense of self and of their future potential. This essay discusses the creative representation and use of this diagnostic moment in film narratives. UsingStill Alice,A Late Quartet,WitandCléo from 5 to 7as examples, we describe how each of these uses the diagnostic moment in relation to narrative construction and characterisation in recognisable ways. We associate the diagnostic moment with certain narrative and visual devices that are frequently implemented in films as means for character development, and for managing the audience's empathy. This is the case whether or not the diagnosis is contested or accepted, and whether the diagnostic moment is the frame for the narrative, or a closing device. By analysing its representation in film, we emphasise the cultural significance of diagnosis as a life-transforming event.
authors.affiliation: School of English, Film, Theatre and Media Studies, Victoria University, Wellington, New Zealand.
authors.forename: Thierry
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Jutel
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health, Victoria University, Wellington, New Zealand.
authors.forename: Annemarie
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7131-3838
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jutel
mesh_terms: D003933:Diagnosis; D004324:Drama; D004645:Empathy; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008512:Medicine in the Arts; D009040:Motion Pictures; D033262:Narration; D017008:Negotiating; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations
keywords: Film; Television