John Q.
Cast
John Q Archibald-----Denzel Washington
Denise Archibald-----Kimberly Elise
Frank Grimes-----Robert Duvall
Rebecca Payne-----Anne Heche
Dr. Turner-----James Woods
Director-----Nick Cassavetes
Thriller-John Q, a factory worker, doesn't have much money. His waitress wife, Denise, helps bring in the family income. After finding out that his son, Mikey (Daniel E. Smith), has a heart problem, John is thankful that he has insurance. After finding out from Rebecca Payne that his insurance doesn't cover Mikey's heart transplant, John tries to raise money to fund his son's operation. Too little, too late. John hears that the hospital is releasing Mikey and are waiting for him to die. That's the straw that breaks the camel's back, so John decides to hold the hospital hostage until they get Mikey's name on the donor's list. Among the list of hostages are Dr. Turner, a cardiac specialist; Lester, a wise-cracking man played by Eddie Griffin; Mitch, a punk who beats his wife played by Shawn Hatosy; and Max, an overweight security guard played by Ethan Suplee. As the day continues, Frank Grimes comes and tries to negotiate with John. Also starring Ray Liotta.
Rater #1
Has not seen movie.
Rater #2
8/10-If I am going to make movies, this is how I'd make them-nonstop action and suspense. Washington, of course, is great, and the rest of the stars who come up are great, also. The beginning scene is my personal favorite.
Rater #3
Has Not Seen Movie.
Rater #4
9/10 This movie is really good. It gets pretty tense, but you get desensitized from that as the film progresses. The actors did a really good job, and the plot was fairly original as far as movies of its kind go. Washington did an excellent job playing his character. Even if he was a "criminal", his virtuous determination made him a "bad guy" easy to like. The movie would've sucked if he killed someone. The film was kind of unrealistic though due to the fact that hospitals can't legally turn any one away if they don't have the money to pay for some urgent medical service and most cops aren't jerks like the ones portrayed. The ending is basically a happy one even if John gets carted off to jail (I mean he did break the law), but the good thing was that his son got the heart surgery and lived on, which is what really mattered.
Rated PG-13 for violence and langauge.
Running time: 116 minutes
Back Home