John Q (2002)

A down-on-his luck father, whose insurance won't cover his son's heart transplant, takes the hospital's emergency room hostage until the doctors agree to perform the operation.

Director:

Nick Cassavetes

Writer:

James Kearns

Stars:

Gabriela Oltean, Denzel Washington, Kimberly Elise

2 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gabriela Oltean	...	Beautiful BMW Driver
Denzel Washington	...	John Quincy Archibald
Kimberly Elise	...	Denise Archibald
Ron Annabelle	...	Tow Truck Driver
Daniel E. Smith	...	Michael 'Mike' Archibald
David Thornton	...	Jimmy Palumbo
Barry G. King	...	Employee Manager
Laura Harring	...	Gina Palumbo (as Laura Elena Harring)
Kevin Connolly	...	Steve Maguire
Larissa Laskin	...	Dr. Ellen Klein
Vanessa Branch	...	Registered Nurse
Stephanie Moore	...	Admitting Nurse
James Finnerty	...	Nurse Reggie
Anne Heche	...	Rebecca Payne
James Woods	...	Dr. Raymond Turner

Storyline

John Quincy Archibald's son Michael collapses while playing baseball as a result of heart failure. John rushes Michael to a hospital emergency room where he is informed that Michael's only hope is a transplant. Unfortunately, John's insurance won't cover his son's transplant. Out of options, John Q. takes the emergency room staff and patients hostage until hospital doctors agree to do the transplant.

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Plot Keywords:

hospital | heart | doctor | hostage | insurance | 

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Taglines:

Give a father no options and you leave him no choice.

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for violence, language and intense thematic elements

Details

Official Sites:

Metropolitan Films [fr] (French) New Line [us] Story, cast, Filmmakers, gallery and downloads

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

15 February 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

John Q.

Filming Locations:

Ajax, Ontario, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$36,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$419,535 (Japan) (22 November 2002)

Gross:

$2,606,250 (Japan) (10 January 2003)

Company Credits

Production Co:

New Line Cinema, Burg/Koules Productions, Evolution Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The scene where Denise calls John from the hospital had to be re-shot because she was wearing the wrong dress.

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Goofs

When Mike and John are eating breakfast in the beginning of the movie, Mike's toast switches sides on his plate between shots.

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Quotes

John Q. Archibald: The hospital is under new management now! Free health care for everyone!

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Connections

Featured in Behind the Scenes of 'John Q' (2002)

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Soundtracks

"The Voice Inside My Heart"
Written by Brock Walsh, Denise Rich, Nick Cassavetes & Aaron Zigman
Performed by Patti LaBelle
Produced and arranged by Aaron Zigman
Patti LaBelle appears courtesy of MCA Records

User Reviews

Good Movie...

Despite what people have said, this movie is NOTHING like Dog Day Afternoon. The only similarities between the two is that both films have to do with holding a public place hostage (In Dog Day Afternoon it was a Bank in John Q, its a hospital). Sure, you see a sort of homage to Dog Day Afternoon in John Q, but thats it, the movie has its own plot. I enjoyed this film, Denzel Washington is really believeable as the down-on-his-luck father, and the rest of the supporting cast executed their characters very well. Most notably the great Robert Duvall as the hostage negotiator and Ray Liotta as the stuck-up police chief. I won't say more about this movie other than it is heart-breaking and you can almost feel the pain frustration John Q has to go through. 4 stars out of 5.