John Q

John Q (2002) — watch this gripping drama online on iFILM, directed by Nick Cassavetes and starring Denzel Washington. A factory worker's world collapses when his son is told he needs a heart transplant and the family's insurance won't pay for it.

John Quincy Archibald works long shifts and still can't make ends meet. His nine-year-old son Michael is diagnosed with an enlarged heart: without a transplant, he has months. The hospital sets an upfront cost of $75,000. The HMO denies coverage. Out of options, John walks into the emergency room with a gun and takes the surgical ward hostage — his demand is one line on the donor waiting list. James Woods plays the hospital chief trying to outlast him, Robert Duvall is the negotiator working the phone, and Ray Liotta leads the police perimeter tightening outside.

Screenwriter James Kelman built the story around the real cracks in American managed care, and the film landed in 2002 as something close to a rallying cry on patient rights. Stream John Q (2002) online on iFILM.