Rating: 
Summary: Sad, Sad, Sad
Review: The saddest movie you'll ever see. Makes you think about what true love really is.
Rating:
Summary: SUBJECT MATTER IS THE KEY
Review: Imagine if everyone acted like JOHN Q did in this movie.OK,DENZEL gives a great performance and the health care system is only made for the rich,but everybody knew that anyway.Far fetched,this story shows to which degry AMERICANS have become obsessed with medias and how you can manipulates them.When this movie reach it's conclusion,it makes you ashame of the system we live in.One thing is sure,watching this film certainly is not a waist of your time.It should be able to elevate your conscience to a serious subject matter,and that is not a thin affair after all.FINAL SCORE:DENZEL 2 HOLLYWOOD 0.
Rating:
Summary: John Q.- An Emotional Drama
Review: An interesting film, but it could be improved in some ways. I must say that Denzel Washington gives a good strong performance as a father who needs to gets his son a heart transplant, but doesn't have the money and his insurance company won't cover the operation. So, he does the unbelievable and takes a hospital hostage until his son gets the medical attention he needs. From here, we also get strong performances from Robert Duvall, Anne Heche, Ray Liotta, James Woods and Kimberly Elise. Elise, gives a very emotional and sad performance as John Q.'s wife. Woods also performs well. I sadly missed out on this film while it was playing in theatres, but I am glad I finally saw it. I really wished I had seen it in theatres though. Available on July 16 to own on video and DVD. I wouldn't mind getting it, but I should say that this is not an extrodinary film. The PG-13 covers understated violence, emotional intensity and some emergency room gore. Not a bad choice for the family. The film basically explains the American Care Health system, the procedures and of course the prices. A film with a fine plot, but could have had an improved script. Though if you haven't seen John Q., you definetly should because you're missing out on a great film! So see John Q., if you know what's good for you!
Rating: 
Summary: HMOs - Look out!
Review: Denzel Washington plays an outstanding role in this story of a father who learns his son needs a heart transplant or he will die. It is yet more proof how far a parent will go to save the life of his/her child, and it is also a tremendous kick in the butt to the HMO insurance companies out there who are eating America alive. For Denzel's son, and for all of us, "Heart Transplants" are always considered "elective surgery" (as if we had a choice), and when Denzel (John Q) finds this out, he takes every avenue known to man to try and not take no for an answer. He does. He's a hero, though what he does to try to get the transplant is criminal, we all fear for him, then we root for him, and finally, we love him. A great film with lots of action, adventure, drama, and heart songs.
Rating: 
Summary: Where's the option for zero stars?
Review: From the start of the movie, the scenery, cinematography, and music are beautiful. Unfortunately the intro sequence only lasts a few minutes; it's all down hill from there. I was ready to take a sledgehammer to the DVD after the first scene with the child. Never have I seen such an obnoxious portrayal of a kid in a movie. I literally cheered when he was sent to the hospital. This is certainly not the reaction you should have when you're intended to feel sorry for the parents. But that isn't what's really wrong with the movie...The dialog was almost wholly unbelievable (in the true sense of the word). There is a scene where one of the unimportant characters chimes in, and spews forth a monologue regarding the evils of the health care system. It looked and sounded so phony I almost forgot I wasn't watching an infomercial. Most of the dialog is fake to the point of being ludicrous; with a little effort they might have made a successful comedy. I won't give you any plot spoilers here. But if you do watch each predictable scene after the next, you'll eventually come to the ending you knew would happen 5 minutes into the movie. The DVD received the usual infinifilm treatment, with great video and sound quality. But all the extras in the world couldn't polish this "idea" of a film. Purchasing the DVD did however have one redeeming aspect. I was delighted to exchange the pristine DVD case with one of my most wrinkled, scratched and punctured cases before I returned this stinker to the store.
Rating:
Summary: Awful
Review: Hollywood junk. Maybe there could have been a decent movie in there somewhere, but we'll never know. Cardboard characters, linear predictable plotting, sophomoric dialogue, and a 30-year old vixen playing the oh-so-evil hospital director make this the must-miss movie of the decade.
Rating:
Summary: Denzel Washington is outstanding as John Q!
Review: I missed this movie in the theatres but heard how great it was so bought the dvd. It is better than great. Denzel Washington is outstanding and plays the role of a loving, but disgusted father very well.This movie also plays with your emotions. Some parts will make you laugh others will cause your eyes to well up.James Woods also puts on a great performance as a doctor "who is just following rules." but makes an attitude shift as the movie continues.Ray Liotta did the best for what he was given to play with. Overall, good movie. You'll enjoy it.
Rating:
Summary: The sad plight of the poor
Review: We all know what happened to John Q & how even a person who can't swat a fly react 'violently' under strenuous circumstances. True, this film is simply an eye-opener. It does not offer any solution to the HMO loopholes; but being an eye opener, it presents us the issues at hand & hopefully we are able to address these matters correctly at the soonest possible time. May I say that the perofrmance of our actors are excellent. Denzel W. is unbelievably real! Robert Duvall portrayed his character well --- that of an able but still sympathetic negotiator. I give everyone a 'thumbs up' sign except for Anne Heche who failed to draw a clear transition from the hard core profiteer to a charitable person. That scene in the hospital room between Heche, Duvall & Elise was critical in establishing her character shift but I believe she fell short in delivering. Enjoyable is not the right word to describe this film. It's simply sad to note John Q's plight & to think that it actually happens in real life is doubly sad. I say, it's a good film --- one with a heart.
Rating:
Summary: Flawed, but still compelling
Review: John Q deals with the plight of a couple whose only child needs a heart transplant. The premise alone is the stuff that parent's nightmares are made of. When the couple is told that they have no insurance coverage for this, because their insurance has been downgraded without their knowledge, they do everything possible to raise the quarter of a million dollars needed for the transplant. Appealing to the insurance company, filing for assistance from government aid organizations, selling all of their possesions, and the fundraising efforts of their community all fail to produce enough cash. John's wife calls from the hospital with the news that their son is being released, that is, he is being sent home to die. His wife demands that he does something. So, John takes over a hospital emergency room, his only demand is that his son be placed on the list to recieve a heart. Ok, so the movie gets predicatable. John does a little freaking out, wins over the sympathies of his hostages and the news watching public, there is a bad cop and a good cop, and of course we are treated to a vain, exploitative TV news anchorman. We are even forced to watch a little "Universal Health Care" propaganda near the end of the movie. I even have to agree that the charges of some characters being stereo typical is true. You know what? I don't care. The entire movie is emotionally compelling. The story is quite believable, if not so much in the exact details of whether or not someone would be denied a transplant (some have claimed this would never happen, I personally believe that it can and does happen), then in the hell of paperwork and scheming that patients are put through by their healthcare organizations and governmental agencys. The acting in this movie is absolutely superb. Denzel Washington is at the top of his game and gives a commanding and believable performance. I especially like when he was fumbling with the gun. An ordinary father isn't going to be experienced at pulling a gun out of his trousers! What an excellent touch! Robert Duval and James Wood give their usual polished performances. Ray Liotta is ok, if a little plastic. Even the secondary characters, such as the video tech and the hostages were quite good. The InfiniFilm version of the DVD has some very interesting extras that fans of small documentaries will enjoy.
Rating: 
Summary: Shameless emotional manipulation and political pap
Review: There is a scene in this film where John Q. Archibald (Denzel Washington) is applying for a job where the interviewer says, "Your qualifications are very impressive, as a matter of fact you may be overqualified." That should have been a quote from his casting interview. This is a horrible script with vapid dialogue and a bleeding heart so big that it is this film that needs a transplant; a brain transplant. Films trying to make a political point (in this case an emotional appeal for National Health Care) are usually deft enough to bury the message in the subtext. This one oversimplifies the issue, preaches unabashedly and even sends a parade of lefties to bang the drum and spew liberal pap all over the screen. Films like this never seem to have trouble finding backers, but at least give us some semi-intelligent interchanges and believable scenes. Director Nick Cassavetes seems oblivious to the fact that the film is cartoonish, as he lets inane drivel attempt to pass as serious dialogue. With the exception of John Q, most of the other characters are cardboard cutouts of you favorite stereotype action figures. We have the cold heartless hospital administrator (Anne Heche), the arrogant doctor (James Wood), the good hearted but dopey factory worker (David Thornton), the grandstanding police chief (Ray Liotta) and the street wise career cop (Robert Duvall). The story is totally predictable, telegraphing the outcome in the first three minutes. Cassavetes seems content with TV level production values and milks the screenplay for every ounce of sympathy it can muster. This is the most shameless emotional manipulation that one could imagine. There is a considerable amount of talent that flounders attempting to prop this film up. Denzel Washington gives a good performance with one of the few characters in the film that is close to believable. He makes John a very noble and respectable character with a warm heart and an iron will. Kimberly Elise is also credible as his wife, and Daniel E. Smith is lovable as his son. The rest of the cast should hide in shame. James Wood is a terrific actor, but overplayed the pompous doctor routine to the point of being ridiculous. Anne Heche, who always comes across as a bit cold, takes this character to the arctic, only to become a weepy basket case at the end in a stunning reversal. Ray Liotta and Robert Duvall are more like a Keystone Kops than serious cops. Shawn Hatosy brings new meaning to the word obnoxious as the rich kid who brings the hooker he just beat up to the ER (sure, that's realistic; it happens all the time). This film isn't terrible, but it's close. I really enjoy watching Denzel work, but this script is a total hack job, and as good as he is he can't save it. I rated it a 3/10. Do yourself a favor and don't insult your own intelligence by seeing it.
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