AWhile the film is based on true events, not everything from the movie actually occurred.One of the more notable inaccuracies in the movie was Susanna and Lisa's escape from the hospital, which never actually happened. In fact, while Daisy's suicide did occur at her new apartment, Susanna and Lisa were not present. Rather, they were in the hospital at the time. While Daisy hangs herself in the film, the method in which she committed suicide actually remained unknown to the patients.The ward didn't go to an ice cream parlor where Susanna's ex-lover's wife was told off by Lisa.The patients didn't spend nights going down a secret pathway and bowling while 60's music played.Lisa never stole Susanna's diary or threatened to kill her. In fact, the character of Lisa only appears in one or two chapters in the book.Susanna's roommate, Georgina, is made less central in the movie than in the book.Daisy has more of a backstory in the book, in which she is abused by her father.Valerie Owens, portrayed by Whoopi Goldberg, does not appear in the novel in a similar form. There is a nurse named Valerie, but she is not at all like Goldberg's character.
ASusanna Kaysen, the author of the book on which this film is based, has stated that she really hates the movie and has described it on more than one occasion as "melodramatic drivel."