The Hospital

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Allan C A sharp, biting satire of the corporatization of hospitals and the health care system from writer/producer Paddy Chayefsky (NETWORK, MARTY) and director Arthur Hiller (THE IN-LAWS, LOVE STORY) was absurdist satire at the time but now seems prescient. The great George C. Scott plays a hospital chief of staff dealing with a string of deaths on his watch that seem to be the result of bureaucratic nonsense mostly. There’s some incredibly snappy dialogue, as you would expect from a Chayefsky screenplay, and Scott is MADE for reading this type of dialogue. Diana Rigg, Barnard Hughes, Richard Dysart, Roberts Blossom, and Katherine Helmond also appear in the film. THE HOSPITAL was the feature film debut of Stockard Channing (an uncredited ER Nurse), Christopher Guest (an uncredited resident), and Dennis Dugan (an uncredited ER doctor). There’s also an uncredited Tracey Walter as a man in the crown. This one is a satirical masterpiece that does not get talked about enough. I may even like this one better than NETWORK.  Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/18/24 Full Review CodyZamboni Z Satire that mostly strikes true. Going in, I expected MASH type wackiness, But George C Scott changed that for me. He's a burnt out, suicidal doctor, He grounds the movie in a magnetic performance. His idealism in the face of bureaucracy and ineptitude, makes this watchable. The weakness of the movie are the annoying sub plots of murdered doctors, a Diana Rigg romance, and protest rallies. All of that is a waste of time, Because none of that is nearly as interesting as Scott's internal battle to regain his lost ideals. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/25/25 Full Review Tyler B One of the most monologue/line heavy movies I've ever seen but WOW. It's a blast. On one hand it's a journey about a man's falling to the point of oblivion and back up again, on the other it's a romance, then there's a commentary on how inept d oul be along with cultural struggles of the time, an there's even slasher elements in it. It shouldn't work as well as it did but what a masterpiece this is. My favorite George Scott performance an I love Rigg as well. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 12/14/23 Full Review Audience Member Chayefsky’s expertly written satire of the U.S. medical “entity” is as darkly prescient as his own ‘Network’. Scott’s performance is perfection, despite his mid-film epiphany being brought on in a morally reprehensible manner. #nitrosMovieChallenge Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/28/22 Full Review Audience Member It leads you down fifty different hospital corridors, all interesting, but the sum is a confusing mess, despite strong performances by George C. Scott, Diana Rigg. "The Hospital" wants to be a diatribe on the inefficiency of the whole health system, but it feels more like a gripe about one crummy hospital. It also wants to be a treatise lambasting the "nuts" of left-wing protests, but the "heroes" of the film are too fucked up to offer any alternatives. Then it wants to be a mystery about one crazed doctor led by a vision to kill other doctors. Finally, it's meant to be a fizzled out lover affair between a man who's given up on life, and the young woman who resurrects him. All of writer Paddy Chayefsky's themes are later duplicated to an embarrassing degree in his brilliant "Network," only the comment on the health care system is swapped out for one on the power of television media. But the latter is taut and concise, where this feels meandering and flabby. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/19/23 Full Review Audience Member watched for the screenwriter. impressed with George C Scott. its such a mix of really serious grim reality and then these doses of ludicrous black comedy. wow. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/28/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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