John Q (2002)

Director:

Nick Cassavetes

Writer (WGA):

James Kearns (written by)

Release Date:

15 February 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Give a father no options and you leave him no choice.

Plot:

A down-on-his luck father, whose insurance won't cover his son's heart transplant, takes the hospital's emergency room hostage until the doctors agree to perform the operation.

Plot Keywords:

Nose Bleed | Desperation | Baseball | Bureaucracy | Car Accident

Awards:

2 wins & 7 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Wed. July 30	3:30 AM	TBS
Wed. July 30	10:00 AM	TBS

Cast

Gabriela Oltean	...	Beautiful BMW Driver
Denzel Washington	...	John Quincy Archibald
Kimberly Elise	...	Denise Archibald
Ron Annabelle	...	Tow Truck Driver
Daniel E. Smith	...	Michael 'Mike' Archibald
David Thornton	...	Jimmy Palumbo
Barry G. King	...	Employee Manager
Laura Harring	...	Gina Palumbo (as Laura Elena Harring)
Kevin Connolly	...	Steve Maguire
Larissa Laskin	...	Dr. Ellen Klein
Vanessa Branch	...	Registered Nurse
Stephanie Moore	...	Admitting Nurse
James Finnerty	...	Nurse Reggie
Anne Heche	...	Rebecca Payne
James Woods	...	Dr. Raymond Turner

Also Known As:

John Q. (USA) (poster title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for violence, language and intense thematic elements.

Runtime:

116 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Canada:AA (Ontario) | Venezuela:PG-13 | Singapore:NC-16 | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia) | Finland:K-15 | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Manitoba) | Iceland:L | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | USA:PG-13 (certificate #38323) | Singapore:PG (cut) | Malaysia:U | France:U | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Brazil:12 | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIB | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Philippines:PG-13 | Portugal:M/12 | South Korea:12 | Spain:13 | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:12 (canton of the Grisons) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15

Filming Locations:

Ajax, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Burg/Koules Productions

Trivia:

This movie has the last footage of film director Ted Demme.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Mitch and Max are talking and Mitch takes the scalpel, he puts it in his left pocket. Later, when he stabs John with it, he takes it out of his right pocket.

Quotes:

Lester: John... you're my hero.

Movie Connections:

Features "Politically Incorrect" (1994)

Soundtrack:

Life on a Chain

What's More Surprising?

What's more surprising about this movie, the fact that it was so awful, or that so many great actors got roped into this Hollywood babble?

The movie is about a father, John Archibald (Denzel Washington) who goes to extreme measures after his young son has a heart failure. After being rejected by their insurance company and the hospital, Archibald decides to hold the hospital hostage so that his son can be saved.

I felt like I was being preached to and being force-fed immature stereotypes, that doctors are soulless puppets for insurance companies, that insurance companies are evils, that health care should be universal, that cops are incapable and stupid, blah blah blah. The problem is that instead of showing us the moral of the story through a mature combination of cinematography, acting, set design and dialog, screenwriter James Kearns forces the garbage down our throats as the characters in the room babble their views for two hours. Not even the tremendous acting of Denzel Washington could save this movie.

The most thrilling aspect was that so many great actors (Washington, Liotta, Woods, Duvall) were in this movie. The film desperately tries to show the duality of life and tries to answer the question how one life is worth compared to another, but its done so immaturely that it's baffling. The movie proves that even with an all-star cast, a poor script and poor directing can ruin the whole thing.

Waste of time.

2 out of 10