John Quincy Archibald is a father and husband whose son is diagnosed with an enlarged heart and then finds out he cannot receive a transplant because HMO insurance will not cover it. Therefore, he decides to take a hospital full of patients hostage until the hospital puts his son's name on the donor's list.
It pulls out more stops than that old silent serial The Perils of Pauline. Unfortunately, it's a talkie.
– Peter Rainer,
New York Magazine/Vulture,
24 Feb 2002
rotten:
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.
– Bill Muller,
Arizona Republic,
4 Mar 2002
rotten:
Manipulative sentimentality, contrived plot and phony climax.
– Rex Reed,
New York Observer,
13 Mar 2002
rotten:
A polemic in search of a plot.
– Jeff Strickler,
Minneapolis Star Tribune,
6 Nov 2002
fresh:
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.