‘A Mouthful of Air’ serves as an important reminder about mental health struggles

It rarely happens that an author goes on to direct a film based on their book, but Amy Koppelman’s 2021 psychological drama A Mouthful of Air stands out as a unique example.

Content warning: This article contains references to anxiety, depression, and suicide.

Starring Amanda Seyfried, Finn Wittrock, Amy Irving, Jennifer Carpenter, and Paul Giamatti in leading roles, the movie didn’t receive much buzz during its release. As time progressed, the movie came to viewers’ attention because it was based on an offbeat topic of postpartum depression, and because of Seyfried’s incredible performance.

The movie follows Julie (Seyfried), who, after being saved from killing herself, is left in a state of extreme anxiety about motherhood, with unresolved issues from her childhood clouding her judgment about becoming a parent. After she learns she’s pregnant, her anxiety levels escalate, as her relationship with her husband Ethan (Wittrock) collapses. Her mother arrives to offer her help and be a pillar of support but ends up making matters worse by bringing Julie’s father along. Julie’s strained relationship with her father is shown throughout the film through flashbacks, and it plays a key role during the flick’s ending.

At the end, Julie is seen playing with her two children in the backyard. However, her worst anxieties are triggered when her baby daughter starts crying, and she is forced to leave Teddy outside to tend to her—leaving Teddy untended is shown to be one of her biggest fears. Ethan’s arrival helps her calm down, but the signs of Julie spiraling return regardless.

At the very end, while a voiceover of Julie reading her story to Ethan is playing, she starts collecting her paintings in a bundle. She then puts her daughter in the crib and proceeds to march outside with a box cutter. Her death happens offscreen, with Ethan’s reactions making it clear that Julie has taken her own life. The movie then ends with an older Ethan celebrating the birth of a baby with his children, with Rachel (Julie and Ethan’s daughter) being handed her mother’s book of illustrations.

Julie is shown to struggle with anxiety and depression throughout the film, eventually losing the battle against them in the end. Even her family’s overwhelming support is not able to heal her scars from her childhood, and A Mouthful of Air serves as an important reminder about mental health illnesses being more serious than people take them to be.

If you or someone you know is at risk of suicide, there are resources that can help:

988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline
Dial 988

The Veterans Crisis Line
Dial 988, Press 1

Crisis Text Line
Text SAVE to 741741