I love this movie so much

If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

In Chicago, John Quincy Archibald (Denzel Washington) and wife Denise (Kimberly Elise) are struggling financially. Their son Mike collapses at the baseball game. Rebecca Payne (Anne Heche) is the hospital president and Dr. Raymond Turner (James Woods) is their cardiac surgeon. Mike needs a heart transplant but the HMO won't cover the minimum $250k. They can't get any help no matter how hard they try. In desperation, an armed John takes over the emergency room. Police Lt. Frank Grimes (Robert Duvall) negotiates with him.It's an over-the-edge melodrama. The problem is that everything is pushed to the edge. Denzel is crying in the first 15 minutes. I appreciate the message but it's lost in the montage of frustration. Denzel is pushing so hard to be hyper angry that it's difficult to root for him. If Denzel and Kimberly could calm down early on, the audience could embrace them. In fact, everybody seems to be yelling in this movie. It's a hard movie to like.

...and I just couldn't understand why people never mentioned it or brushed it off like it wasn't good or something. I mean, when I left the theater, I thought Denzel did it again. Fast forward to today, when I watched it again. Now, I think the director was trying to make an Oliver Stone pic, or Network for the health care system. But this film is so damn hammy and corny and obvious and ridiculous, that all you can do is grin and wait for the hits to keep on coming. I mean, it makes Spike Lee feel understated.And the sad part is, you can see a great Denzel performance in the making. You can tell he was all in and thought this could be the next Philadelphia...but the movie is about 10 or 15 years too late, and way too contrived and blunt for you to believe in the story or the characters.I love what this wants to be. And in some ways, this is to hospitals what Inside Man was to banks, but putting those two films next to each other shows how far off this film was. It's worth a watch, but if you had really good memories of it like I did, it's probably better left alone.

If you want to know how to make a film which tells a story, makes several potent points, exposes how shabby life is, and sticks one in the eye of the establishment, then this does it, and has it, all. Super script, super storyline, super acting (across the board), goodies, baddies, and those who change their spots for us, and all packaged in a quite breathtaking order. It has suspense in oodles. It is superbly shot, superbly soundtracked, and cleverly stays completely focused on how morality is a political tool used against ordinary people.And this film hasn't aged a bit. It is as sharp and relevant now as it was when first released. It is worth any money to see simply because it is a lesson in the art of constructing a masterpiece that'll have us talking days after we have seen it.(Still) An excellent film.

John Q is one of the best movies i've ever seen. It's very dramatic and affecting. The way Denzel Washington acts (Especially the "last talk" with his son) is incredible, the best performance I have ever seen! The movie to me shows how strong a band between a father and a son should be. A father who is willing to do anything for his son! Simply amazing. The way how everyone turns to support him, even the hostages, makes the faith in humanity restored (altough it is a movie)I can't understand why this movie only has a 6.8 in the ratings. in my opinion this is the most underrated movie ever!My favorite quote in the movie was "I AM NOT GOING TO BURRY MY SON, MY SON IS GOING TO BURRY ME!!!". I really felt it and had to struggle to resist my tears.