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The Hospital

The Hospital – 1971
Director
Arthur Hiller

Writer
Paddy Chayefsky

Cast
George C. Scott
Diana Rigg
Barnard Hughes

Review by Wayne Malin

A little overdone but good, 2 February 2008

Dr. Boch (George C. Scott) is the chief of medicine at a major NYC hospital. He’s left his wife, his children have disowned him, he’s impotent, drinks a lot and contemplates suicide. Also there’s a killer roaming the hospital. Then he meets VERY strange Barbara (Diana Rigg) and falls in love. She wants him to run away with her–but can he completely give up on his old life and start a new one?

Very strange movie with an Oscar winning script by Paddy Chayefsky. It presents a suicidal main character and shows us a hospital full of overworked nurses and doctors that is run incompetently. It manages (somehow) to actually make this seem pretty funny. It’s not laugh out loud humor–it’s VERY black humor. Also the acting is right on target–Scott is just great (and Oscar nominated) here. You see him trying to keep his sanity in a totally crazy situation. Riggs character is more than a little odd but her matter of fact manner works and she’s also incredibly beautiful. The script is strong and brutal–but never too much. I think it fumbles the ball at the end with a situation that goes way too over the top–but it’s still worth seeing.

If this had been done totally seriously it probably would be impossible to take. Also look for Katherine Helmond in a small bit and Stockard Channing and Christopher Guest in uncredited bits. I personally had trouble taking this seriously.

From what I’ve heard hospitals WERE this bad back in the 1970s but not anymore. See it for the acting and script. I give it a 7.

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