John Q
From Free net encyclopedia
John Q is a 2002 movie starring Denzel Washington as John Quincy Archibald, a father and husband whose son is diagnosed with an enlarged heart and then finds out he can not receive a transplant because insurance won't cover it. The title is a reference to the term John Q. Public, indicating that the struggles in the story could be experienced by any average American. The movie was directed by Nick Cassavetes.
A protest against the policies and hidden procedures of many of today's insurance companies, John Q also stars Anne Heche, Ray Liotta, and Robert Duvall, among others.
John is a factory worker in a mining town in Illinois. His wife, Denise (Kimberly Elise), works as a grocery store clerk. On a Sunday afternoon, John's son Michael (Daniel E. Smith) is playing baseball with the local Little League. As he is running the bases, he suddenly collapses on the field. He is taken to (the fictional) Hope Memorial Hospital in Chicago, Illinois. It is discovered that he has fallen into heart failure; his blood pressure is 68/34. Dr. Raymond Turner (James Woods), is assigned as Michael's doctor. Dr. Turner explains to John and Denise that Michael's heart is useless; he will need a transplant, or else he will die.
A transplant costs $250,000. Naturally, John and Denise cannot afford it. John's insurance plan has recently changed to an HMO. The representative from his union tells John that an HMO is a less expensive policy, but there are some restrictions, one being that there is a minimum catastrophic coverage payout limit of $20,000. Denise does not have any benefits from her job.
John and Denise make every effort to raise the money. They must make a down payment of $75,000 in order to put Michael's name on the donor's list to receive a new heart. They liquidate everything they own, and hold fund raisers in their church. They contact Children's State Services and Medicaid to no avail. Denise is told that the hospital is going to release Michael, and his family will simply have to take him home and watch him die. John is livid.
On the morning of Saturday, September 29, 2001, John enters the hospital with a gun hidden under his jacket. As he walks in, Dr. Turner is in the hallway, having a casual conversation with an ex-patient of his, a rich man who has just received a heart transplant. The family is overjoyed and jokes with Dr. Turner about the success of the operation, which drives John into a frenzy.
John asks Dr. Turner to enter the next room, where he points the gun at the physician's head and orders him to give his son a new heart. They enter the emergency room, and he holds the hospital at gunpoint, threatening to kill the hostages if his son does not get the operation.
An ambulance arrives at the hospital. The paramedics become aware of the situation and notify police. After a three-hour standoff, John eventually surrenders. However, there is still no heart available. He threatens to commit suicide, so his heart can be used to save his son. As he holds the gun to his own head, a woman is killed in a car accident miles away, who happens to have the same blood type as Michael. He is given the operation, and gratefully both father and son live, and even though he is cleared of most charges, John has to serve a prison sentence for his actions.
The movie was shot in Toronto, Canada.