This is now the second film that I have watched which focuses on Americas health care, or lack of it, I live in the UK where all our citizens get free health care no matter what there circumstances are, What have we come to in this world if money is greater than the sum of a human life, America and it's people should be ashamed of themselves to ever let this situation happen. The film shows this situation up very well, The acting was first rate and the film in the end is a very worthy effort. Denzil Washington does a fine job of showing how we all would feel if we were thrust into a nightmare situation that meant you could loose your child simply because you don't have enough money to pay the rip of prices of the blood sucking health system.

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.

Considering the plot of "John Q", I am actually surprised something like this hasn't happened already. The film is about every parent's nightmare...and their little boy is dying and in need of a heart transplant. However, the father's insurance won't cover it and the hospital seems a bit indifferent to the family's plight. So, as the hospital is about to just discharge the boy to go home to die, the desperate father (Denzel Washington) does something which shows just how desperate he is...he takes the Emergency Room hostage! And, he threatens to kill the people there unless his son is placed on the transplant list.

About 75% of the film takes place in the Emergency Room and it makes for a very tense story. It also is a film that will rip your guts out as you watch, and I strongly recommend you see this with some Kleenex nearby. The scene where the little boy collapses early in the film is a real tearjerker!!

Overall a very interesting story (despite a few plot holes*) and some very good acting. Well worth seeing and very well made.

*The biggest plot hole is that they could have SAID the boy was now on the recipient list and not bothered to add him. After all, otherwise this might encourage other desperate folks to do as John Q did in the film! And you would have thought John would have considered this.