This Doctor’s Special month, let us shed some light on the silent struggles that doctors go through in their lives. There have been many medical films made by filmmakers around the world. But today, we will be particularly talking about films made by renowned filmmakers that highlight certain crucial doctor’s issues.
Feeling guilty for not being able to keep all patients alive?
Bringing out the Dead (1999)
Image source: https://www.youtube.com
An old saying goes – “Doctors are second to God on this earth.” But in reality, they are humans, like everyone else. Martin Scorcese’s psychological drama ‘Bringing out the dead’ is a fantastic film putting light upon this subject through Frank, played by Nicholas Cage, a doctor in misery as he has not saved any patient in a long time. Long working hours flowing into the nights and the stress of saving patients has affected his sanity, driving him to see ghosts of the patients he could never save. The film highlights issues that are ignored time and again. The resulting violence against doctors is one of the causes of this.
Genre: Psychological Drama
Director: Martin Scorsese
Cast: Nicholas Cage, Patricia Arquette, John Goodman
Watch the trailer: https://youtu.be/8TMg9WlKgsU
Euthanasia and assisted suicide
You Don’t Know Jack (2010)
Image source: https://filmdaily.co/
Euthanasia has been a much-debated topic in the medical field for ages. Every country has its laws defining what is acceptable and what’s not. While the struggle to legalise it is on, you must learn the story of Dr Jack Kevorkian, who was an American pathologist and euthanasia advocate. A biopic starring Al Pacino as Dr Jack Kevorkian wonderfully portrays this inspirational man’s journey to help patients die with dignity despite the struggles and opposition he had to face. It is rightly titled ‘You Don’t Know Jack’ as he was often wrongly portrayed by the media. He quoted, “Dying is not a crime” and stayed by this principle to assist at least 130 patients to die. We do not know when euthanasia would get fully legalised in all parts of the world, but the fight will continue, and hopefully, more Dr Jacks will continue to support it!
Genre: Drama, Trial Drama, Biopic
Director: Barry Levinson
Cast: Al Pacino, Brenda Vaccaro, John Goodman
Watch the film: https://www.hotstar.com/in/movies/you-dont-know-jack/1770021052/watch?utm_source=gwa
Insult of a doctor and their research
Ek Doctor Ki Maut (1990)
Image source: https://scroll.in/
Is a doctor’s life devoid of jealousy, insult and drama? Guess not. Writer-Director Tapan Sinha tells us the story of a disheartened Dr Dipankar Roy, played by the renowned actor Pankaj Kapur through Ek Doctor Ki Maut (Death of a Doctor), a beautifully written and crafted drama. No sooner does he discover a vaccine for leprosy than his downfall starts – ostracism, bureaucratic negligence, reprimand and insults to his research. The film is dedicated to Dr Subhash Mukhopadhyay, whose life inspired the director to create this sensational drama. He was an Indian physician who pioneered In vitro fertilisation treatment, but rather than getting recognition, he was ostracised and insulted that ultimately led to his suicide. Ek Doctor Ki Maut raises crucial questions about ethics in this field.
Genre: Drama
Director: Tapan Sinha
Cast: Pankaj Kapur, Shabana Azmi, Anil Chatterjee, Irrfan Khan, Deepa Sahi
Watch the film: https://www.airtelxstream.in/movies/ek-doctor-ki-maut/EPICON_MOVIE_17162
The prevalence of stress, anxiety and depression among doctors
Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. (2003)
Image source: Netflix
“ You must be thinking about what is new in that; everyone knows it. Well, Murli Prasad Sharma or Munna Bhai, as we know him, did not before he enrolled himself in a medical college to get an MBBS degree. Although he did not clear the exams, he soon became popular in the college due to his warm-hearted nature. He did not know medicine, but he knew how to cure people with his care, empathy and love. His “Jadu ki jhappi” won the hearts of many. “Toh tu kiske liye ruka hai mamu?” Munna bhai can win your heart too! But if the stress is overpowering, remember Munna Bhai and his ways of handling stressful situations! You may argue it only happens in movies, but take Munna’s advice – smile and watch the stress disappear!
Genre: Comedy Drama
Director: Rajkumar Hirani
Cast: Sanjay Dutt, Gracy Singh, Arshad Warsi, Sunil Dutt, Boman Irani
Watch the film: https://www.netflix.com/search?q=munnabhai%20mbbs&jbv=60036104
The Takeaway
Dr Frank, Dr Jack, Dr Dipankar and Dr Murli have narrated stories with important lessons to take back. Hope we all learnt a thing or two. But to conclude, every doctor and patient deserves mutual love and respect.
