I learned about Nash equilibrium as part of a discussion on game theory in one of my freshman year courses. And while I had heard about the movie “A Beautiful Mind”, I hadn’t watch it and knew very little about John Forbes Nash, Jr.. I am really happy that I got a chance to learn more about this brilliant man by getting a chance to watch the movie which also inspired me to read a bit more about him afterwards.

The movie starts with Nash’s life from the time he gets into Princeton with a prestigious scholarship, and meets several other promising math and science students. And we see his relationship with his roommate, Charles Herman (literary student), having an influence on him early in his life. Nash’s brilliant ideas lands him an appointment in MIT. A few years later, Nash is approached by the Pentagon to help decipher enemy communication, and he amazes people with his ability to decipher some of the code mentally. Nash turns increasingly obsessive about searching for hidden patterns and also becomes more paranoid about being monitored/followed by the enemy. His obsession and paranoia is clearly demonstrated later in the movie during a guest lecture at Harvard where he suspects Soviet agents are after him and attempts to flee. We see him sedated and sent to a psychiatric facility, on he believes is run by the Soviets. We then learn that he is diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. We witness his struggles with this devastating condition, and what is impressive is that he ultimately succeeds in sufficiently grappling with his condition and in utilizing his brilliant mind towards his game theory ideas. At the end, we witness Nash receiving the Nobel Prize in Economics for his revolutionary work in game theory.
I researched more about Nash after watching the movie, and read a lot of details that were left out about his life. Despite the fact that the movie was not an entirely accurate exposition of Nash’s life, I greatly enjoyed it. And the movie did an excellent job of depicting how Nash’s motivation to apply his brain power towards progress in mathematical thought helped him partly overcome a devastating mental condition.