John Q (2009)

"John Q" is good for some thought-provoking ideas and questions concerning the ever-growing problems with our nation's health care policies, as well as some hard-hitting performances from its arsenal of talented actors. For these reasons, the movie qualifies as an average crowd pleaser, though it's predictability, as well as some cloyed storytelling in its second half, keep it from being the powerful drama it aspires to be.

Washington gives an outstanding performance, but is dragged by Elise's crying.... This is not one of those movies that are only worth watching on video, it's a great movie that I recommend to everyone who's mature enough to watch a boy dying right in front of his parents, at 10. Think about that. One of Washington's best line in this film is," I will not bury my son, my son is going to bury me!" Denzel Washington is amazing as always, and I've seen most of his films, I've never once been disappointed. He can play anything, and his role as a caring father in this film was enough to make me want to rate this three stars alone. But once you throw in solid dialogue, a great plot and other supporting actors, you have yourself one truly great movie.

I was disappointed by one aspect of this movie: the fact that it wasn't released earlier that year, because Washington surely would've received an Oscar nomination for this instead of "Training Day". It's hard to not like this movie and impossible to not feel for the characters. I'll see this movie again and I hope that by reading this review you'll see it too.

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!

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I have always liked Hollywood movies that put the secret intelligence world on the spot:

Enemy of the State

Breach (Widescreen Edition)

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

This movie is so on target, but I did not want to watch it because I tended to put it off as over the top. After watching Michael Moore's Sicko (Special Edition), I went and rented this movie and am glad I did. If you wish, read my review of Sicko before watching John Q.

I'm not going to give away the ending, there are many excellent reviews below, but the bottom line is that our medical system is totally corrupt, trapping good people in a very bad system. We need to change that.

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Denzel Washington seems incapable of giving anything short of a great performance. He can be tough, scared, or tender, as the moment requires and this movie requires him to be all three. He plays a man who is devoted to his family and who is frustrated because the reduced hours of his job have caused a family financial crisis. When his son collapses on the baseball field because of a serious heart condition, John Q. (Washington) discovers that his insurance coverage has been reduced and will not cover a required heart transplant. After exhausting all the legal means at his disposal, John Q. takes over the hospital at gun-point and demands that his son be given a heart. The script then begins to spiral into melodrama and it becomes somewhat preachy. The message of poor health care for lower-income people may be legitimate, but it is presented in a heavy-handed manner. Despite these flaws, there are some tender and some tense moments in the film. Watching Denzel Washington is worth the price of admission.

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John Q is an extremely intellectually dishonest movie that superficially presents only one side to a very complex issue. The entire movie is contrived to spread the message that we need socialized medicine. The problem is that they do not try to challenge your mind, making you think they might be on to something or pose any real facts that support their beliefs. No they simply preach to us "ignorant" folk, through a series of over the top exaggerations of healthcare woes, and pull at our heart so we feel bad for not accepting Hilarycare years ago. They even quote Bill Maher in that respect.

Everything is this movie is contrived and everyone except John Q is vapid and one dimensional. Doctors are greedy, poor are righteous and life is black and white with the haves and the have nots. Health care suffers because of greed by insurance companies, your job and medical staff, not because of consumers demanding so much as well. This movie is an infomercial for an agenda, with nothing from the opposing view whatsoever.

They push socialized medicine as a pancea, but do they show Canadians travelling to our country for better medical care? Do they talk about how countries with socialized systems often do not get the services they need nearby or at all as they are simply not available? What good is free healthcare if no one offers the service you need? Do they mention medical saving account,? quality of services or the impact on taxes and our economy? Non of these issues is even remotely touched upon.

This movie could have been so good, with such a great cast, if they had just been a more honest and real about the situation and less preachy. Denzel is great as always and I tried to empathize, but I also felt like a republican at the Wellstone memorial. This issues is very worthy of debating, but to encapsulate it into the simplistics this movie does is truly ridiculous. Rent this if you want validation that socialized medicine is the answer, but don't go looking here for any stimulating debates or ideas.

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