IMDb > Critical Condition (1987)

Critical Condition (1987) More at IMDbPro »


Overview

User Rating:
4.4/10   926 votes
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Director:
Michael Apted
Writers:
Denis Hamill (story) &
John Hamill (story) ...
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Contact:
View company contact information for Critical Condition on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
16 January 1987 (USA) more
Genre:
Comedy more
Tagline:
Guess who's playing doctor? more
Plot:
A man framed in a jewel smuggling tries for an insanity plea and is sent to a hospital for review where he is confused for another doctor and takes over the hospital when a major storm hits. full summary | add synopsis
NewsDesk:
(3 articles)
Wishful Linking
 (From FilmExperience. 27 October 2009, 4:14 AM, PDT)

This Is Not a Link Round Up
 (From FilmExperience. 5 October 2009, 8:09 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
Long on potential, short on results more (3 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Richard Pryor ... Eddie Lenahan / Dr. Kevin Slattery

Rachel Ticotin ... Rachel Atwood

Rubén Blades ... Louis
Maria Cardinale

Joe Mantegna ... Arthur Chambers
Bob Dishy ... Dr. Foster
Sylvia Miles ... Nurse Maggie Lesser
Joe Dallesandro ... Stucky
Randall 'Tex' Cobb ... Box

Bob Saget ... Dr. Joffe

Joseph Ragno ... Palazzi

Jon Polito ... Kline
Garrett Morris ... Helicopter Junkie

Brian Tarantina ... Tommy Pinto

Jude Ciccolella ... Jack Kinney
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Additional Details

Runtime:
100 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Sound Mix:
Stereo

Fun Stuff

Movie Connections:
References Geheimcode: Wildgänse (1984) more
Soundtrack:
THE RIDE OF THE VALKYRIES more

FAQ

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0 out of 2 people found the following comment useful.
Long on potential, short on results, 19 August 2007
4/10
Author: NxNWRocks

Basically a vehicle for Pryor, this is a rough and somewhat ugly movie, disfigured in part by a surfeit of swearing in a film that doesn't need it and a bunch of vaguely unsympathetic characters. The central plot – a framed man who has claimed insanity has to pretend to be a doctor during a blackout at a hospital – is intriguing if somewhat convoluted. As a twist on the fish-out-of-water story, it has much potential, in the same way that Woody Allen's "Hollywood Ending" has much potential in its premise of a suddenly-blind director having to go through the entire shoot without letting anyone know he is blind. Just as with that movie, "Critical Condition" mainly fails to capitalize on its potential, and the film is oddly slow-moving and genuine laughs are hard to come by.

Pryor does well to work with the underdeveloped material, and Rachel Ticotin adds solid support in the role of the hospital administrator. There is a nice addition of a subplot involving crooks roaming the hospital to add to the tension of the staff and patients trying to survive the power outage, and the film as a whole is at least watchable, but not very memorable. It does not have widespread appeal as a comedy/thriller and should probably be best recommended for Pryor fans only.

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