The Hospital (1971)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Arthur Hiller

Writer:

Paddy Chayefsky (writer)

Release Date:

29 September 1972 (Denmark)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

Madness, Murder and Malpractice.

Plot:

Black comedy in which a suicidal doctor struggles to find meaning in his life while a murderer stalks the halls of his hospital.

Plot Keywords:

Hospital | Black Comedy | Suicidal | Doctor | Rape

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 6 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

George C. Scott	...	Dr. Bock
Diana Rigg	...	Barbara
Barnard Hughes	...	Drummond
Richard Dysart	...	Dr. Welbeck
Stephen Elliott	...	Dr. Sundstrom
Andrew Duncan	...	William Mead
Donald Harron	...	Milton Mead
Nancy Marchand	...	Mrs. Christie
Jordan Charney	...	Hitchcock
Roberts Blossom	...	Guernsey
Lenny Baker	...	Dr. Schaefer
Richard Hamilton	...	Dr. Ronald Casey
Arthur Junaluska	...	Mr. Blacktree
Kate Harrington	...	Nurse Dunne
Katherine Helmond	...	Marilyn Mead

Also Known As:

Right Smack Into the Wind (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, sexual content and drug references.

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Canada:PG (Ontario) | USA:GP (original rating) | USA:PG-13 (re-rating) (1997) | Finland:S | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Simcha Productions

Trivia:

According to TCM host Robert Osborne, Paddy Chayefsky passed on having Walter Matthau or Burt Lancaster in George C. Scott's role, and either Jane Fonda, Ali MacGraw, or Candice Bergen in Diana Rigg's.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the Emergency Room, the dead patient's eyes and head change positions between the time Mrs. Cushing and Dr. Spezio look at him.

Quotes:

Barbara: I have a thing about middle-aged men.
Bock: I admire your candor.
Barbara: You've been admiring a lot more than that.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Best! Movies! Ever!: Hospitals (#1.13)" (2007)

Chayefsky hits it out of the park

I had never paid much attention to this flick until I learned that Paddy Chayefsky - author of the brilliant "Network" - was the scriptwriter. His work there had instructed me as to his genius, so when 'Hospital' appeared on TMC, I was anxious to see it. I was not disappointed. Looking at both this film and "Network" it would seem that his big theme is the absurdity, inanity, and sheer viciousness of large human enterprises (e.g., hospitals, networks) against the sanctity of individual experience and the human spirit, and all of it delivered with a knife-edge sense of utterly black humor. "Hospital" is as black of a comedy as "Network" is, and the excellent cast, led by the incomparable Scott, does his work full justice. This is a keeper; definitely not to miss.