Saturday, January 29, 2011

You Don't Know Jack (2010) - 3½ Stars

Al Pacino is excellent and very believable as Dr. Kevorkian. Looking like him, Pacino emulates perfectly the quirkiness of Dr. Kevorkian and had me drawn to the movie with curious fascination.

Kevorkian was a brilliant doctor who created a way of assisted suicide for the terminal ill. He invented a machine to inject the proper amounts of chemicals, at the users discretion, directly into their blood stream to painlessly, effortlessly and humanely end their lives thus giving the terminal ill a way to die with the dignity they deserve. With the help of his sister, Margo Janus, (Brenda Vaccaro), and eventually trusted friend Linda, (Deirdre O'Connell ), Kevorkian continued to find clients to assist i their deaths. Even though he was ordered to stop, Kevorkian continued to help those who reached out to him. He eventually became known as "Dr. Death," and spent much of his aging years defending his procedures in the courts of law. Convinced a patient has the right to die, he was willing to go to jail to defend his beliefs. I have to respect anyone who has as much passion as he did.

Working at an animal hospital, I see pets almost everyday brought in for euthanasia. My opinion is that, if faced with a terminal illness, euthanasia should be an option available to you. Perhaps added as a condition of your will that can make your departure easier. Originally made for HBO, "You Don't Know Jack," is an very interesting and recommended film on a little piece of our history.


Bee Holder Productions, HBO Films, Royal Oak Films
Director: Barry Levinson
Writer: Adam Mazer
Producer: Scott Ferguson
I viewed 11/10

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