| Sicko (Special Edition) | 
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Avg. Customer Rating:   (based on 318 reviews)
Sales Rank: 474
Category: DVD
Actor: Michael Moore
Director: Michael Moore
Publisher: Weinstein Company
Studio: Weinstein Company
Brand: WELLSPRING/GENIUS
Label: Weinstein Company
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Widescreen, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), French (Original Language), Russian (Original Language), Spanish (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled)
Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Media: DVD
Running Time: 123 minutes
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5.3 x 0.6
MPN: WEID80750D
UPC: 796019807500
EAN: 0796019807500
ASIN: B000UNYJXQ
Release Date: November 6, 2007
Theatrical Release Date: June 22, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Description
Following on the heels of his Palm d'Or winning Fahrenheit 9/11 and his Oscar winning film Bowling for Columbine, acclaimed filmmaker Michael Moore's new documentary sets out to investigate the American healthcare system. Sticking to his tried-and-true one-man approach, Moore sheds light on the complicated medical affairs of individuals and local communities.
Amazon.com
SiCKO is more like a controlled howl of protest than a documentary. Toning down the rhetoric of past efforts--no CEOs, congressmen, or celebrities were accosted in the making of this film--Michael Moore's latest provocation is just as heartfelt, if not more heartbreaking. As he clarifies from the outset, his subject isn't the 45 million Americans without insurance, but those whose coverage has failed to meet their needs. He starts by speaking with patients who've been denied life-saving procedures, like chemotherapy, for the most spurious of reasons. Then he travels to Canada, England, and France to see if socialized medicine is as inefficient as U.S. politicians like to claim--especially those who receive funding from pharmaceutical companies. Moore finds quality care available to all, regardless as to income. He concludes with a stunt that made headlines when he assembles a group of 9/11 rescue workers suffering from a variety of afflictions. When Moore is informed that detainees at Guantanamo Bay--technically American soil--qualify for universal coverage, he and his companions travel to Cuba to get in on that action. It's a typically grandstanding move on Moore's part. And it proves remarkably effective when these altruistic individuals, who've either been denied treatment or forced to pay outrageous costs for their medication, experience a dramatically different system. Nine years in the making, SiCKO makes a persuasive case that it's time for America to catch up with the rest of the world. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
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| Customer Reviews: Read 313 more reviews...
 Truth of the matter January 8, 2009
Michael Moore did a brillant job exposing the plethora fallacies within the American health care system. As I watched this movie, I was reminded of the movie starring Denzel Washington, "John Q" whereby Denzel's character decides to take matters into his own hands, in an effort to save his only son's life. Basically, he holds a local hospital hostage at gunpoint to perform the necessary surgery to save his son's life. John Q. (Infinifilm Edition)Now, by no means am I suggesting that Denzel's character was right....but I fully understand his pain, personally.
Hopefully, under the Obama administration, positive change will come to America's health care system that will help the thousands of American's with and/or without health insurance.
Let's join the rest of the civilized world and adopt universal health care December 30, 2008
Yes, I'm sure that Michael Moore, as a crafty entertainer as well as a documentarian, exaggerates for effect on occasion: I'm sure the socialized medicine systems of Great Britain, Canada and Cuba aren't the picture-perfect utopian ideals they may appear to be in "Sicko", and- yes- our own system isn't as horrible as it's made out to be, either. But Mr. Moore has convinced me that there's a broad truth at work: other countries have moved beyond health care for profit and the United States should, too. Any imperfections in a socialized medicine system are far less serious than the shortcomings of our own system, where providers routinely attempt to skimp on treatment because doing otherwise is bad for the bottom line.
Interestingly, the movie mostly concentrates on people who DO have health insurance in this country, demonstrating that private, for-profit care often isn't much better than having no health insurance at all. Then we see how much happier people seem to be in other countries where health care isn't an issue: if you get sick, you get the treatment you need. Again, I'm sure there are foibles and inefficiencies in universal, public health care systems, too (anything run by humans won't be perfect, after all), but who can honestly argue that health care decisions should regularly be made with an eye toward the bottom line?
"Sicko" delivers its credible message in a thoughtful, entertaining, and, unfortunately, often heartbreaking manner, and a plethora of special features on the DVD drive the film's points home further. Don't miss this one.
 Good Report About Healthcare System - But Not Without Some Sensationalism December 27, 2008
Just finished watching the movie and also some of the DVD extras. The main purpose of the film, which is showing how the US health system is unfair and deceptive, is well achieved. We recognize ourselves or someone we know in the situation of having treatment denied due to limitations over finance resources or a pre-existing health condition. Well, living is a pre-existing condition to be sick and die, and the movie managed to show how the government, the drug and the health insurance industry could not care less about people when money is all that matters.
However, I thought the attempt to show how public and free health care systems work so fine in the UK, France and Cuba was a mistake. While I agree that just the fact of having free access to medicine and assistance in those countries is just good enough, that does not mean it is effective. Let's not forget that this is just a movie and things and people tend to behave differently when the camera and the lights are on. I don't mean to be pessimistic and/or skeptical, but that's just what happens in reality. So the apparent "red carpet" treatment patients in the movie get might not have been that genuine. Comparing different systems is valid for the point Michael tried - and managed - to make, but if he had chosen to focus only on the US problem, it would have produced better results.
Good movie, despite its apparent flaws.
enlightening December 22, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Everyone in the US who needs healthcare (that is EVERYONE...) should watch this movie. It's an interesting perspective and an enlightening movie for any political view.
Great commentary on the American political scene, but could have used more statistics December 16, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I will begin this review by stating that I am a proud American citizen, an immigrant from a Third World country who grew up in America. I have also traveled around the world, and have experienced the health care systems in other countries. I also have friends and family living in other countries, both developed and under-developed countries. From my own experiences in America and in other countries, and those related to me by my friends and family, I've come to believe that the US healthcare system is extremely inefficient, corrupt, and unfriendly to customers. If one were to consider slavery as 19th century America's national shame, then healthcare is probably the shame of our time. Many individuals have tried to describe the failings of America's health care system in editorials, books, and news reports. But this 2-hr long documentary captures the essence of these failures; both cause and effect, and the agents. Sicko correctly reveals the fundamental cause: greed, and the system whereby greed is allowed to take people's lives: a deregulated, privately run health care system. Taken together, this leads to a health care safety net with very big holes. Importantly, Moore focuses only on those who do have insurance, and shows the loopholes that allow health care providers to deny care. So instead of coming of as a paean to the poor and uninsured, this movie actually looks at those that have been insured; the working professionals both blue and white collar. And as a good liberal, Moore contrasts the American system with those in Canada, Cuba, France and England.
The failings of this movie are also numerous. First of, Moore fails to elucidate the specific laws that have created our current health care system. He only looks at one specific bill passed during the Nixon administration that sanctioned HMO's as the pre-eminent form of health care provider in the US. The movie should have spent some time presenting the origins of worker-provided care, the origins of France's present health care system under Vichy rule, and differences in the health care education in different countries. The US is unique in that one needs an undergraduate degree before entering medical school. This by itself dramatically increases the time and cost incurred by doctors in training, which in turn raises their salaries.
The 2nd major failing of this documentary is the very incomplete comparison of the US health care system to those in other countries. Specifically, there were no comparisons with health care systems in Asia, such as those of Singapore, China and India. The latter two produce many of America's best doctors and medical researchers. The former, Singapore, has probably the world's best health care system in terms of cost/benefit ratio, access by all citizens to latest technical advances, and a strong orientation on customer satisfaction.
A third major failing, and the biggest surprise of this movie, was the complete absence of mention of patient privacy. I suspect Moore examined Iceland's system and came away with more questions than answers as to the need of patient privacy. And probably the biggest failing of this movie is the absence of aggregate statistics. Yes, Mr. Moore provides prices that specific individuals have had to pay for specific medical services and goods. But Mr. Moore does not include important statistics like the trend in HMO deductibles and premiums over time, trends in Medicare and Medicaid spending (overall and per capita) over time, comparisons of per capita medical costs across different countries, etc, etc... Nobody can argue with numbers, but lots of people can argue with anecdotal evidence, which is what this documentary almost exclusively presents.
But overall, I still like and recommend this movie. I believe the facts presented in the movie are correct, and I agree with Mr. Moore's opinion.
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