14 Hours (2005) (TV)

Director:

Gregg Champion

Writer:

Danilo Bach (writer)

Release Date:

3 April 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Action | Thriller

Plot:

While one of the worst storms to hit Houston, Texas rages outside, the staff of a hospital races against time to ensure hundreds of patients are evacuated safely. |

Plot Keywords:

Weather | Disaster | Hurricane | Emergency | Memorial Hermann Hospital

Cast

Rick Schroder	...	Dr. Foster
JoBeth Williams	...	Jeanette Makins
Kris Kristofferson	...	Chuck Whortle
Kirsten Robek	...	Nurse Lily
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Emy Aneke	...	Person In Street
Simone Bailly	...	Phoebe
Matt Bellefleur	...	Scott
Eric Breker	...	Fire Rep.
Kimberly Chiang	...	Nurse #2
Doris Chillcott	...	Wheelchair Patient
Aaron Craven	...	Resident
Pamela Diaz	...	Amelia
Rick Dobran	...	Gary
Brian Drummond	...	Scoutmaster
Carrie Fleming	...	O.R. Nurse
Vincent Gale	...	Finnegan
Anthony Harrison	...	Police Rep.
Roger Haskett	...	Anesthesiologist
Adrian Holmes	...	Charlie
Dan Joffre	...	Steve
P. Lynn Johnson	...	P.R. Person
Hiro Kanagawa	...	Dr. Chin
Karin Konoval	...	Dr. Estrada
Tom McBeath	...	Eddie
Dagmar Midcap	...	YV News Reporter
David Neale	...	O.R. Attending
Mark Pawson	...	TV Anchorman
Eileen Pedde	...	CVICU Doctor
Kim Roberts	...	Helen
Ian Robison	...	MICU Doctor
Jennifer Sciole	...	Becky Griffin
Nancy Sivak	...	Cynthia
Katie Stuart	...	Ronne
Catherine Thomas	...	STICU Nurse
French Tickner	...	Mr. Reade
Devon Weigel	...	Nurse #1
Erin Wright	...	Runner

Runtime:

88 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

UK:12

Company:

14 Hours Productions

Somewhat believable if you are from anywhere but Houston

This movie starts off on the wrong foot and never really gets it going. The first scene shows a Life Flight helicopter landing and just outside the window you can distinctly see mountains in the background. For those of you who might not ever have been to Houston there is no elevation change. The city sits just above sea level and a 5 ft. incline is considered a big hill. To go along with that scenery, any shots outside of the hospital immediately tell the viewer that they are not in Houston. The trees are all missing leaves or are pine trees, neither of which Houston has very much of. Even the hospital itself, on the outside, is very unbelievable. Memorial Hermann Hospital is one of the top hospitals in the United States and sits smack dab in the middle of the Medical District just miles from downtown Houston, yet every outside shot of the hospital makes it appear that the hospital is out in the suburbs or even the countryside.

It is obvious that whoever was in charge of the actual tropical storm part of the movie skimped out because the numerous shots of radar are all wrong. The first radar image in the movie is that of Hurrican Hugo hitting South Carolina. We later see Kris Kristofferson leaving his job and one of his assistants tells him that Alison is moving back south across Houston yet the radar image he shows has Alison clearly moving north off of the Gulf of Mexico into Houston...probably the initial landfall of Alison.

As for the acting, it isn't all that bad. JoBeth Williams, Kris Kristofferson and Rick Schroder all do a decent job considering that this is a straight-to-TV movie. The plot of the story is decent and the fact that it is based on a true story makes it a bit more entertaining. My one problem with the acting is the portrayal of Houstonians with big thick Southern accents...the actors all sound like they are from Birmingham, Alabama and not Houston, Texas.

The movie gets its point across and to the general audience it does exactly what it is meant to: entertain. If you are looking for a factual account of what happened to the city of Houston in June of 2001 then you will be disappointed. One thing to keep in mind before viewing this movie is that it is based solely on the evacuation of Memorial Hermann Hospital and not on Tropical Storm Alison and the impact on Houston metro itself. If you are looking for a factual account of Tropical Storm Alison's impact on Houston metro might I suggest watching The Weather Channel's Storm Stories for Tropical Storm Alison.

*1/2 out of *****