Movie Reviews
Film and television reviewed the way I’d want to read them — with a rating that means something, an honest accounting of what works and what doesn’t, and craft notes for writers who want to understand how the machinery operates.
Each review includes a craft notes section for writers — specific observations about structure, character, world-building, and what the film does that you can actually use. Not theory. Technique you can steal.
Medical Drama (9)
May 19, 2026Awakenings (1990)
Penny Marshall's 1990 Oliver Sacks biopic. Robin Williams as the doctor, De Niro as encephalitic patient. L-Dopa breakthrough.
May 19, 2026Coma (1978)
Michael Crichton's 1978 medical thriller. Genevieve Bujold investigates hospital coma conspiracy. Source novel by Robin Cook.
May 19, 2026Critical Care (1997)
Sidney Lumet's 1997 medical satire. James Spader as resident in end-of-life care system. Helen Mirren, Anne Bancroft.
May 19, 2026Patch Adams (1998)
Tom Shadyac's 1998 Hunter Adams biopic. Robin Williams as the unconventional doctor. Sentimental but the source story holds.
May 19, 2026Something the Lord Made (2004)
Joseph Sargent's 2004 HBO film. Alan Rickman as Dr. Alfred Blalock, Mos Def as Vivien Thomas. Pediatric heart surgery pioneers.
May 19, 2026The Hospital (1971)
Arthur Hiller's 1971 medical satire. Paddy Chayefsky screenplay, George C. Scott as suicidal chief of medicine. Won Best Original Screenplay.
May 10, 2026The Pitt Season One – Review
Critics gave The Pitt Season 1 a 96% score. I bailed before the finale. Where the show's institutional realism breaks, and what the cast couldn't save.
May 10, 2026The Pitt Season Two – Review
Season 2 earned higher critic scores than Season 1 and got worse. The cyber attack disaster, the institutional collapse, the cowardice. 5/10.
May 19, 2026Wit (2001)
Mike Nichols' 2001 HBO film. Emma Thompson as professor dying of ovarian cancer. Margaret Edson play adaptation. John Donne quotations.