What to read, watch, and listen to if you lovedTo Fail with Flying Colors
Paul Adams · Book · 2017
If you loved To Fail with Flying Colors, start with Takin' Over the Asylum (Donna Franceschild, 1994) — a series on the same thread. Below: 4 films, 4 series and 2 podcasts, each matched to To Fail with Flying Colors across media.
You loved the way To Fail with Flying Colors humanizes the psychiatric experience through the intimate, often surreal, professional boundaries of therapy.
Films on the same thread
The Fall
Tarsem Singh · Film · 2006
Explores: Storytelling, Escapism, Imagination.
Like To Fail with Flying Colors, this film explores the blurred line between a patient's fractured reality and the transformative power of storytelling within a clinical, institutional setting.
Patch Adams
Tom Shadyac · Film · 1998
Explores: The Power of Laughter, Unconventional Medicine, Challenging the System.
Fans of the medical unconventionality in To Fail with Flying Colors will appreciate this look at a doctor who defies systemic norms to prioritize the human connection with patients.
Winter Light
Ingmar Bergman · Film · 1963
Explores: Faith Crisis, Existential Angst, Silence of God.
If the existential gravity in To Fail with Flying Colors resonated with you, this film offers a similarly profound look at the failure of traditional care and spiritual guidance.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Film · 1975
Shares a thread with To Fail with Flying Colors: Social Commentary.
This classic echoes the institutional critique found in To Fail with Flying Colors, focusing on the tension between those living within a mental ward and the rigid authority figures.
Series on the same thread
Legion
Noah Hawley · Series · 2017
Shares 2 threads with To Fail with Flying Colors: Mental Illness, Existentialism.
Much like the case studies in To Fail with Flying Colors, this series delves into the subjective, mind-bending reality of psychiatric patients and the fragile nature of their identities.
In Treatment
Rodrigo García · Series · 2008
Explores: Therapy, Mental Health, Self-Reflection.
This series mirrors the intimate focus of To Fail with Flying Colors, pulling back the curtain on the complex, vulnerable relationship between a therapist and his diverse roster of patients.
Maniac
Patrick Somerville · Series · 2018
Explores: Mental Health, Escapism, Pharmaceutical Experimentation.
This surreal journey through pharmaceutical experimentation captures the same dark, psychological curiosity found in To Fail with Flying Colors regarding the limits of mental health intervention and personal identity.
Takin' Over the Asylum
Donna Franceschild · Series · 1994
Explores: Mental Health Awareness, Outsider Perspective, Underdog Story.
Readers drawn to the eccentric character portraits in To Fail with Flying Colors will find this look at a therapeutic community through the lens of radio equally compelling and compassionate.
Podcasts on the same thread
The Truth
The Truth · Podcast · 2026
Explores: human condition, experimental storytelling, moral ambiguity.
The anthology format of this podcast mirrors the variety of extreme cases in To Fail with Flying Colors, delivering short, cinematic stories that explore the complexities of the human condition.
Sleep With Me
Silver Sleeper Productions LLC · Podcast · 2026
Explores: Insomnia Relief, Mindfulness, Boredom Induction.
While tonally different, the focus on managing the restless mind found in To Fail with Flying Colors is inverted here into a tool for finding calm through guided, repetitive narrative.
Keep exploring
Common questions
Is To Fail with Flying Colors based on true events from Dr. Percival Shieling's career?
To Fail with Flying Colors is a 2017 book by Paul Adams that recounts the tales of Dr. Percival Shieling's most fascinating and extreme cases. The narrative follows the doctor as he reflects on his experiences treating various patients after his psychiatric institute is abruptly closed.
What kind of patients does Dr. Percival Shieling treat in To Fail with Flying Colors?
In To Fail with Flying Colors, Dr. Shieling treats a diverse group of individuals. His cases include an exiled king, a paranoid romantic, a teenage runaway, a Catholic contemplative, a mysterious prophet, and a self-made ultra-millionaire, all of whom are described as his most extreme patients.
Does To Fail with Flying Colors focus on the personal life of Dr. Percival Shieling?
Yes, To Fail with Flying Colors follows Dr. Percival Shieling after his psychiatric institute is abruptly closed and his career falls into shambles. The book centers on him recounting the secrets and stories of his most fascinating cases while navigating the aftermath of his professional life.
Who is the author of To Fail with Flying Colors?
To Fail with Flying Colors was written by Paul Adams and published in 2017. The book details the professional history of Dr. Percival Shieling, focusing on the specific, extreme cases he encountered during his time running a psychiatric institute before its sudden closure.