John Q (2001)

23% of critics liked it
(129 reviews)
83% of users liked it
(150,196 ratings)

A national health care crisis in the United States yields this tense drama from screenwriter James Kearns and director Nick Cassavetes, who experienced a real-life dilemma with his daughter's congenital heart disease that mirrors the one in this film. Denzel Washington stars as John Q. Archibald, a… More A national health care crisis in the United States yields this tense drama from screenwriter James Kearns and director Nick Cassavetes, who experienced a real-life dilemma with his daughter's congenital heart disease that mirrors the one in this film. Denzel Washington stars as John Q. Archibald, a factory worker facing financial hardship as a result of reduced hours in his workplace. When his young son, Michael (Daniel E. Smith), is stricken during a baseball game, John and his wife, Denise (Kimberly Elise), discover that their child is in need of an emergency heart transplant. Although the Archibalds have health insurance, they are informed by hospital administrator Rebecca Payne (Anne Heche) that their policy doesn't cover such an expensive procedure. Unable to raise the money himself, John persuades the hospital's compassionate cardiac surgeon, Dr. Raymond Turner (James Woods), to waive his lofty fee, but is still left with too much of a financial burden to bear. With no recourse but to take his son home to die, John snaps and holds the staff and patients of the hospital's emergency room hostage at gunpoint. John is soon a media hero, the focus of intense news coverage, even as police chief Gus Monroe (Ray Liotta) and hostage negotiator Frank Grimes (Robert Duvall) try to resolve the situation before it leads to bloodshed. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG-13, 1 hr. 58 min.
Directed By: Nick Cassavetes
Written By: James Kearns
Genres: Drama

In Theaters: Feb 15, 2002 Wide
On DVD: Jul 16, 2002
Studio: New Line Cinema

Critic Reviews

Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune
A polemic in search of a plot.
Rex Reed, New York Observer
Manipulative sentimentality, contrived plot and phony climax.
Bill Muller, Arizona Republic
A sappy, melodramatic Denzel Washington vehicle that ensnares you in the standard hostage-movie scenario and doesn't let go until the director runs the whole playbook.
Peter Rainer, New York Magazine
It pulls out more stops than that old silent serial The Perils of Pauline. Unfortunately, it's a talkie.
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly
Cassavetes thinks he's making Dog Day Afternoon with a cause, but all he's done is to reduce everything he touches to a shrill, didactic cartoon.
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper
...a ridiculous script that gets just about everything wrong...
Afsheen Nomai, Common Sense Media
Thought-provoking. Too intense for young teens.
Peter Canavese, Groucho Reviews
Strands good actors in mushy, movie-of-the-week material. [Blu-ray]
Rob Gonsalves, eFilmCritic.com
The movie comes dangerously close to saying that the solution to a personal grievance is, well, terrorism, when you get right down to it.
Prairie Miller, WBAI Web Radio
With Hurricane, Training Day, now John Q, Denzel perfects the righteous rebel, a fine blend of hot rage and charismatic cool, declaring free health care for all.
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
Social messages, simplistic action, and teary melodrama are manipulatively but unsuccessfully mixed in this picture, which tries to provide a "hard" look at an honest working-class man (Washington) who loses control while trying to save his child's life
Greg Maki, Star-Democrat (Easton, MD)
Instead of presenting the story and allowing us to draw our own conclusions, Cassavetes blatantly tells us what we should think.
John R. McEwen, Film Quips Online
Washington, Woods, and Duvall are so capable, they almost save this schlock-fest from itself.
John Patterson, L.A. Weekly
A coercive script by James Kearns, and some middling direction by Nick Cassavetes, can't rob the movie of an undeniable, headlong crowd-pleasing power as it tackles an issue that touches us all.

Read all 14 critic reviews

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

John M

Explosive idea for a film. Denzel Washington as usual puts on a great performance.
Melvin W

John Q. Archibald: My son is dying, and I'm broke. If I don't qualify for Medicare, WHO THE HELL DOES? "Give a father no choice and you leave him no option" How far would a father go for his son? Yeah. That's never been done before. And guess what.… More
John Q. Archibald: My son is dying, and I'm broke. If I don't qualify for Medicare, WHO THE HELL DOES? "Give a father no choice and you leave him no option" How far would a father go for his son? Yeah. That's never been done before. And guess what. It's been done way better. John Q is an unoriginal, cliche, overly dramatic movie that even manages to rip off Dog Day Afternoon. Denzel Washington is always good, so I'm not going to complain about him, as he was okay. Everyone else for the most part sucked. Duvall and Liota weren't what I would call bad, but they were playing characters they could play in their sleep. Heche and Woods were bad, but I think a lot of the was their material. Kimberly Elise was horrible as the mother of the dying kid. Okay, now for what I really don't like about this movie. The story is dramatic enough. We have a kid who needs a heart transplant and a father that can't pay for it. But Cassavates goes to extreme lengths to add as many cliche gimmicks as he can to the film. Such as a heart monitor counting down and a series of close calls for the father. He has no confidence in the material and feels the need to insert as much garbage as possible. The movie is very predictable. If you know the premise; after the first scene of the movie you will know what is going to happen. John Q really is a bad movie. It should and could have been a tearjerker. But I was never emotionally involved. I honestly didn't care because I knew what was going to happen and I was really getting sick of watching the horrible dialogue and characters. I believe the common moviegoer will love this movie. But if you've seen more then 3 or 4 of these type of movies; do yourself a favor and give this one a pass.
Albert K

Denzel can't save this awfully directed movie. Awful direction/cinematography/script. There's literally a scene where a woman goes, "Why are you so brave?" ...the hell? Denzel carries this movie. Without him, this movie would've been crap.
Bobby H

Denzel Washington plays an amazing role as John Q struggling to find ways to get his boy an emergency transplant; when all honest approaches fail he snaps and goes above and beyond to get his son a heart. This movie to me (being in law enforcement) was hard to watch but an amazing… More
Denzel Washington plays an amazing role as John Q struggling to find ways to get his boy an emergency transplant; when all honest approaches fail he snaps and goes above and beyond to get his son a heart. This movie to me (being in law enforcement) was hard to watch but an amazing film both at the same time. It was a tear jerker without a doubt. What I loved the most about it is it has you siding with what some would say was the "bad guy". All in the same, the law enforcements approach is a reasonable one. I love that the movie has the capability to put you in a position of really questioning ones morals and ethics --- it makes you ask the question --- how far would you go for those you love? While I thought the ending was slightly weak and predictable, the movie itself is an amazing film, a tear jerker, a question of moral and ethics, and it will have you on the edge of your seat with some of the most tense moments I have ever seen in a movie. I would recommend all too see this film.
Al S

A gripping, exciting and emotionally charged edge of your seat thriller. It's ER meets Dog Day Afternoon. A very intense and moving film that has something to say. A magnificent all-star cast. Denzel Washington gives a powerful and unforgettable performance. Robert Duvall is… More
A gripping, exciting and emotionally charged edge of your seat thriller. It's ER meets Dog Day Afternoon. A very intense and moving film that has something to say. A magnificent all-star cast. Denzel Washington gives a powerful and unforgettable performance. Robert Duvall is teriffic. Ray Liotta is electric. James Woods is excellent. Anne Heche is marvelous.
Dan S

Has good intentions, but really doesn't add up to much.
Dean M

Excellent emotive, gripping drama story of an African-American father tryin to save his son for the heart transplant where he takes the hspital emergency staff hostage and refuses to release anyone until his son's operation is assured.
Dean !

A simple idea but very well done, if you like this you should love the Negotiator!
Aliyanto L

Will you do anything, I mean really anything to help your children?
danny d

i liked it because denzel was good, would have been average without him
Leigh R

A father in need...
Jason S

Good. Denzel rarly misses a beat.
Khris N

A good drama - intresting and unique. Very emotional.
Todd S

The underrated Denzel Washington, gives an oscar worthy performance as John Q, a man willing to do anything to save the life of his son. This movie shows two things. How heartless the rich and powerful can truly be and how one man can make a difference. This is a powerful movie that… More
The underrated Denzel Washington, gives an oscar worthy performance as John Q, a man willing to do anything to save the life of his son. This movie shows two things. How heartless the rich and powerful can truly be and how one man can make a difference. This is a powerful movie that shows how strong the relationship between father and son can be and just how important it is for every person in the country to have health care.
Fascade F

A spectacular body of work that represents the thoughts and points of view for the solutions to the healthcare monopoly when it comes to the care and concerns of the hospitalized patients. A must see...an epic.
Deb S

John Q tells the story of a man, John Archibald (Denzel Washington), who is having trouble making ends meet. When his son, Mike, collapses on a baseball field and is diagnosed as needing a heart transplant, John is confident that things will be okay, because he has medical insurance.… More
John Q tells the story of a man, John Archibald (Denzel Washington), who is having trouble making ends meet. When his son, Mike, collapses on a baseball field and is diagnosed as needing a heart transplant, John is confident that things will be okay, because he has medical insurance. Unfortunately, it turns out that his Tier II coverage doesn't cover $250,000 operations. The hospital director, Rebecca Payne (Anne Heche), refuses to put Mike's name on the organ recipient list until John can cover the $75,000 down payment. John does everything that seems possible to raise the money but when he can't think of no another way to keep his son in the hospital, he takes the law into his own hands in order to save his son's life. While the problem of un- or under-insured people is real, the fact in this movie is that "John" wasn't un-insured, he didn't know the coverage limits, and how his less than full-time job affected his benefits. For those of us with insurance, it's a wakeup call to check on these things. Ask yourself if Canadians who come to the US for various types of necessary surgery do so because they like it better here, or because they are either denied or put on waiting lists before receiving treatment. (And yea, I am speaking from personal experience.) As a final note, if you aren't an organ donor, please be one. The life you lose may save another! <a href="http://tinypic.com?ref=2livfpk" target="_blank"><img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/2livfpk.jpg" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic"></a> <a href="http://tinypic.com?ref=15dl8x4" target="_blank"><img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/15dl8x4.jpg" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic"></a> <a href="http://tinypic.com?ref=2cdq3a" target="_blank"><img src="http://i51.tinypic.com/2cdq3a.jpg" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic"></a> <a href="http://tinypic.com?ref=4sdtv9" target="_blank"><img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/4sdtv9.jpg" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic"></a> <a href="http://tinypic.com?ref=24cuv7r" target="_blank"><img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/24cuv7r.jpg" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic"></a> <a href="http://tinypic.com?ref=zx4fvl" target="_blank"><img src="http://i51.tinypic.com/zx4fvl.jpg" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic"></a> <a href="http://tinypic.com?ref=30idgex" target="_blank"><img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/30idgex.jpg" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic"></a>
Joseph E

Despite it's many defects,"John Q.", Is a film you can't help but want to feel right in the movie with it, even though some of it seems so redundant,and maybe just a liitle lax in writing, or direction. Although John Q. errs in almost every category, it's… More
Despite it's many defects,"John Q.", Is a film you can't help but want to feel right in the movie with it, even though some of it seems so redundant,and maybe just a liitle lax in writing, or direction. Although John Q. errs in almost every category, it's Acting somehow also maybe a little overwrought as well, keeps you waiting for more. .You will still want to root for "John Q." even before he takes the hospital under seige. Also the Healthcare side story pushes it, it is one reason why I was midly intuned with the movie. I Midly Reccomend this film. Washington Fan's won't be let down! Also check out the DVD for some great extra footage.
Curt C

By-the-numbers Hollywood fluff. The issues in the film are of course in complete black-and-white, and everyone, I mean _everyone_, gets a chance to redeem themselves. Yes, this film has a message to tell you about health care, and it doesn't care how much it fractures your… More
By-the-numbers Hollywood fluff. The issues in the film are of course in complete black-and-white, and everyone, I mean _everyone_, gets a chance to redeem themselves. Yes, this film has a message to tell you about health care, and it doesn't care how much it fractures your skull by beating that message into your head over and over and over.
Nicolas K

What would you do in his shoes?
matt s

Damn, Cassavetes' son has made some shit movies.

Read all 20 featured audience ratings

Cast

            Denzel Washington as John Q. Archibald

            Robert Duvall as Frank Grimes

            James Woods as Dr. Raymond Turner

            Kimberly Elise as Denise Archibald

            Daniel E. Smith as Mike Archibald

            Anne Heche as Rebecca Payne

            Ray Liotta as Gus Monroe

            Eddie Griffin as Lester

            Shawn Hatosy as Mitch

            Paul Johansson as Tuck Lampley

            David Thornton as Jimmy Palumbo

            Kevin Connolly as Steve Maguire

            Ethan Suplee as Max

            Heather Wahlquist as Julie

            Troy Beyer as Miriam

            Obba Babatundé as Sgt. Moody

            Troy Winbush as Steve

            Laura Harring as Gina Palumbo

            Larissa Laskin as Dr. Klein

            Dina Waters as Debby Utley

            Martha Chaves as Rosa

            Shera Danese as Shelby's Wife

            Scott Bloom as Desk Guard

            Keram Malicki-Sánchez
            
            Vanessa Branch
            
            Dina Spybey
            
See full cast