John Q. (Infinifilm Edition)
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Movie Reviews of John Q. (Infinifilm Edition)
Movie Review: Too true for words
Summary: 5 Stars
For those who reviewed this movie that stated that this movie was 'unreal' and this 'would not happen' and it's just a propaganda for the democrats are living in dream land. Maybe they are single, healthy and never get to go to the Dr., and are not aware of the pathetic state of health care of America. I've had to deal myself since my son was born. My son has Recessive Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa. His skin basically falls apart at the slightest touch. It is awful, brutal (see some clinical pics at my website, silviaskingdom.com). The only treatment that my son has is basically take care of the wounds, which cover, at times, as much as 60-75% of his body. Some of these wounds are chronic and take months to heal. Taking care of wounds is vital because if a bad infection occurs, my son could die. Infection is the number one killer of persons diagnosed with my son's condition. You would think that insurance companies would cover the medical supplies, the ointments, the bandages and everything involved in taking care of the wounds, but the reality is, the vast majority of HMOs do not. They don't because bandages and related products to care for wounds are 'over the counter', hence not covered under insurances.
Sounds crazy? It is. And there is nothing I can do about it. Some states, if the income is low enough, provide some services that include coverage for bandages, and that is what fortunately is saving us, because I could never afford to pay the tens of thousands of dollars it takes each year just to purchase the various skin care products my son needs. I know what you're thinking... there is no way bandages cost that much! Yes they do actually... for example: an 8x10 sheet of Mepitel for deep wound coverage is $40. A roll of 1" gauze to bandage my son's hand is $1, and he goes through 4-6 of those per week, and that is just on his hands!
It gets crazier... the various HMOs that we've had over the years have also denied to have my son seen by specialists too because they were 'out of network'. Of course they are out of network, my son's condition is one in a million, we can't expect to see a 'specialist' on this condition in every corner of the country, are we?
I know what you're thinking... it's all my fault, yeah, the evil HMOs -- how dare they actually have the audacity to enforce the contracts people choose to purchase! Choose to purchase? I never had that choice. I never had the choice to choose between HMOs, let alone even have the opportunity to get PPOs. Medical care won't be legitimate in this country until we stop seeing ten-dollar boxes of Kleenex on the bills. Everyone gasps when I tell them how much my son's power chair cost... yes, $7,000, and there is no way it's worth that much. It is all outrageous, and the movie John Q. eloquently and effectively addresses the needs of families in a most poignant manner.
Movie Review: Vigilante? Or heroic father? A story of corporatized medicine.
Summary: 5 Stars
At the height of the HMO arrogance, Corporatized Medicine believed that they could mistreat human beings in the name of the dollar. I believe, I hope, that their attitude has taken a turn as they realized humanity will not be slapped down. Stir in the extra emotion of organ donation, in which one must die for another to live, and you have the electric tension of John Q.
John Archibald (Denzel Washington) is a good man, a hard worker, who just needs a little more luck and a few more hours at the slow factory job he holds. When his son, Mike (Daniel E. Smith) collapses at a baseball game, he is rushed to the hospital where John and his wife Denise (Kimberly Elise) discover that Mike needs a heart transplant, quickly.
But, John's insurance won't cover it. His company switched his health plan from a PPO to an HMO to save money, and there is no provision for transplantation. Hospital Director Rebecca Payne (played surprisingly well by Anne Heche) demands Mikey's transplant be treated as a cash account, demanding $75,000 down payment before Mike can even get on the donor list. (still think the donation process is not dollar driven?)
John tries to raise the money, but time is running out. In a desperate attempt to save his child, John takes heart surgeon Dr. Raymond Turner (James Woods) hostage, along with the emergency room staff, demanding that his son's name get on the list.
Hostage negotiator Lt. Frank Grimes (Robert Duvall) arrives on the scene, but is hampered by the presence of media-hungry Police Chief Gus Monroe (Ray Liotta). Also present is Tuck Lampley (Paul Johansson) a television reporter hungry for 'The Story' but who is sympathetic to John's plight.
The film is not action packed, but nonetheless has a palpable tension. It's a story of humanity, and the interactions between real people. It's a story about mistakes and redemptions, arrogance and assumptions, and the all too human core inside all of us.
The performances are spectacular. Denzel Washington, James Woods, Robert Duvall, Ray Liotta, Kimberly Elise, Paul Johansson, and (surprise) Anne Heche do phenomenally good jobs in their roles. The photography is excellent, the editing, script, and atmosphere are great, and the musical score matches mood with the film.
'John Q.' is one of those movies I can watch over and over again, and still feel the same emotion I felt the first time I watched it. Though the ending does have some unrealistic qualities, it fits well with the film and doesn't skip over the wrongs that John did to try and make things right for his son. Definitely a 'buy'. Enjoy!
Movie Review: Strong Drama
Summary: 5 Stars
John Quincy Archibald kidnap sentence probably put him jail for 20 years plus. The lawyers downplayed the kidnapping charge by saying his sentence would be two to three years. John's son will receive an emergency transplant and live and John will spend most of his life in prison.
John Q son's transplant in the movie cost $250,000 and John Qs insurance covered 20k, HHMO, 2 tier castrophic event. The hospital received 22k from John with the expectation of 75k before putting him on a list.
The Health care management looked cold and unsympathic to the uninsured patient. HHMO looks like a cost cutting plan, an alternative to the rising cost of health care.
The cost of Health care proportion to wages was disproportionate. John Q earning 18k a year and work 20 hours a day. If a person has an emergency and no insurance, the hospital stablizes but does not offer futher treatment. Hospital Administrator, Rebecca Payne tells Frank Grimes, "there are 50 million uninsured Americans and I have to decide and we can't take care of all of them. I have to decide who receives care."
Frank encourages John to have faith, telling him faith is believing in something you don't know; Frank tells John that he will either go to jail or die, if he does surrender; Chief of police, Gus Monroe order a sniper hit on John that injuries John but gives John an opportunity to capture the sniper; and Frank tells John that the crowds don't matter and that there is only him and John. John Q story is a tragedy, a desparate man, a people's hero, a secret pawn of national media, and a blue collar worker. John extreme solution saved his son's life, allowed him to keep his promise to find a new heart for his son, and invoke fierce loyalty from his wife.
In the last scene John believes he must kill himself to save his son, giving his heart for the transplant. John tells his son to "stay away from the bad things in life", "stand up for important things", "and to know he will always be with his son, in his heart."
The stories ending is anti-climatic, whereas, "Pursuit of Happiness" inspires the viewer to believe in prevailing through the system. The anti-climatic theme is that the "Health care system is broke" and will continue failing to meet the basic needs of average people, perhaps, a voice of discontent that costs are favoring the privileged. John tells his son to grab as much money as possible, telling him that everything is better with money. Maybe someday, the return of the country doctor will make sense as HHMO become more expensive and health coverage more difficult to purchase.
Movie Review: Credible, entertaining, informative
Summary: 5 Stars
If you love drama, get this movie. If you enjoy quality entertainment, get this movie. If you have a Pollyanna view of our healthcare system or how police handle hostage negotiations, avoid it until you can extract your head from the sand! If you have no idea what parents will do to protect their children, what extreme action they might take to save them from harm, read a newspaper now and again. Better still, ask a parent who is confronted with a similar situation! I read various reviews pertaining to this film and am amazed how many people have no clue how police handle a hostage situation. Yes, there are lulls in the action, just as in real life. Police attempt negotiations, but also maintain high readiness, prepared to fire at any opportunity in order to end a standoff with minimal loss of life or injury to innocent civilians. Hostages frequently become fond of their captors, a reaction known to psychologists as the Helsinki Syndrome. While trying to understand why they have been taken hostage, it is reasonable, even logical, for hostages to demand an explanation from their captors.
This movie is intelligent, entertaining, and entirely credible. What is more, Denzel gives an incredible performance as a father frustrated by a bureaucratic system that is inherently heartless to the plight of John Q and his dying son. It is an insight into the heartbreaking desperation that compells him to extreme action. The news is filled daily with reports of men with far less cause who are driven to extreme action by a sense of desperation. The scenario is entirely believable.
More importantly, as the featurette "Fighting for Healthcare", included on this disc makes abundantly clear, millions of American citizens are either uninsured or underinsured. Worse, among those covered by insurance programs through their employment, policies can change at the whim of the employer. This can be done without notice to the employee, who is left believing they are fully covered for all medical contingencies.
This movie is believable, credible and tense. It is less an action film than a psychological thriller. John Q harkens back to the tense confrontation found in Crimson Tide, which again pitted Denzel Washington against Gene Hackman.
This is a marvelous film. The features included are a stunning indictment of a healthcare system that fails a huge segment of our citizens. The movie is exciting, and highly entertaining. I strongly recommend this movie.
Movie Review: A father risks all when put in a place he shouldn't be
Summary: 5 Stars
Denzel Washington (our title charactor John Q.) and Kimberly Elise play loving parents to Michael Archibald, a young boy who collapses while playing baseball due to heart failure. Upon being rushed to the hospital for an emergency heart transplant the Archibald's are told that their health insurance does not cover the surgery, and John, already working dead end jobs as a factury worker, can't afford the surgery (their house is about to be repoed as well so he's really down on his luck right now) and so his situation seems hopeless until he takes matters into his own hands and takes the emergency room of the hospital hostage. Now he's able to make demands of the hospital and the insurance company, demanding they operate on his son. The end of the film gets very intence, to the point where you're at the edge of your seat and praying something will happen quickly to make things better. Denzel does an amazing job here, and James Wood and Anne Heche do an outstanding job at making you really really hate them. Eddie Griffin does what he does best by making you laugh quite a bit and Ray Liotta plays against type...not...by playing a jack@$$. Anyways, the real heart of this film is not in the 'father will do anything to save his son' route but more in the 'I can't believe that the medical and insurance world is that currupt' and the sobering part is that they are that currupt. This movie should help to open your eyes to the type of men and women (heartless men and women) who have high office in the places we place our trust. Medical attention, to me, should be a non-question type item. If you have a patient who WILL DIE if not given immediate attention, yet his insurance won't cover the surgery...what would you do? The fact that the question needs to be asked shows how little this society of people gives two $hits about one another. It should be a no-brainer. You should perform the surgery. Money is not the issue, life is the issue. It's sad to know that some, maybe even most, people don't see it that way. John Q. did what he had to do, but the point is that he should have never had to.