The Doctor (1991)

When a self-centered doctor is diagnosed with cancer, he becomes better able to get closer to his patients and understand a life outside his career.

Director:

Randa Haines

Writers:

Ed Rosenbaum (book) (as Ed Rosenbaum M.D.), Robert Caswell (screenplay)

Stars:

William Hurt, Christine Lahti, Elizabeth Perkins

3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
William Hurt	...	Dr. Jack MacKee
Christine Lahti	...	Anne MacKee
Elizabeth Perkins	...	June Ellis
Mandy Patinkin	...	Dr. Murray Kaplan
Adam Arkin	...	Dr. Eli Blumfield
Charlie Korsmo	...	Nicky MacKee
Wendy Crewson	...	Dr. Leslie Abbott
Bill Macy	...	Dr. Al Cade
J.E. Freeman	...	Ralph
William Marquez	...	Mr. Maris
Kyle Secor	...	Alan
Nicole Orth-Pallavicini	...	Sarah
Ping Wu	...	Jay-Jay
Tony Fields	...	Roger
Brian Markinson	...	Michael

Storyline

Jack McKee is a doctor with it all: he's successful, he's rich, extremely self centred and he has no problems.... until he is diagnosed with throat cancer. Now that he has seen medicine, hospitals, and doctors from a patient's perspective, he realises that there is more to being a doctor than surgery and prescriptions, and more to life than serving only his own needs.

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Plot Keywords:

doctor | surgery | hospital | cancer | blood | 

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Taglines:

He was a doctor who thought he knew it all... until he became a patient.

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 August 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Doktor

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$165,392, 28 July 1991, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$38,120,905

Company Credits

Production Co:

Touchstone Pictures,Silver Screen Partners IV

Technical Specs

Runtime:

122 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Christine Lahti and Zakes Mokae previously appeared in Gross Anatomy (1989), which also centers about medical doctors.

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Goofs

In a scene supposedly set on the roof of a San Francisco office building, between William Hurt and Elizabeth Perkins, well=known Los Angeles high-rises can be seen in the background.

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Quotes

June Ellis: I pray. I meditate. I eat chocolate. I dance.

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Connections

Featured in Siskel & Ebert: The Doctor/Dutch/Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey/My Father's Glory/My Mother's Castle (1991)

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Soundtracks

Be Bop For Boo
Written and Performed by Royal Crown Revue
Courtesy of Big Daddy Records

User Reviews

When a Doctor Becomes Patient

The efficient surgeon Dr. Jack MacKee (William Hurt) is a successful, wealthy and indifferent man, married to but distant from his wife Anne (Christine Lahti) and their son Nicky. When Jack is diagnosed with a growth in his throat, he is submitted to radiation therapy and feels how patients are treated and exposed in the hospital. He befriends the fellow patient June Ellis (Elizabeth Perkins), who has incurable brain tumor, and she gives a lesson of life to him. But his treatment does not work and Jack needs to be submitted to a surgery. What will happen to him?

"The Doctor" is a sensitive drama with a magnificent story of a doctor that changes his values when he understands the perspective of patients after becoming one with cancer. William Hurt, Christine Lahti and Elizabeth Perkins have wonderful performances and the story is never corny despite the pleasant conclusion. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Um Golpe do Destino" ("A Strike of the Destiny")