Overall, I think John Q appealed to the audience's emotion more than anything else (pathos). Instead of having an older person need a heart transplant, they chose a young boy. I think more people would feel worse about a young boy not being able to get a heart transplant because his family doesn't have insurance.
The scene that stood out to me the most was when the boy was laying in his hospital bed and another mother is yelling and crying to "let her see her baby." Then the boy asks if his dad is coming--well his dad is in the middle of holding an emergency room hostage. This scene definitely appealed to my pathos because I felt terrible for the mother, for the young boy, and for 'John Q's' wife. Right then, I wanted the hospital to pay for the heart transplant so the young boy could get better and live a happy life.
Also, the ethos at work would be the fact the Denzel Washington is in the movie. He is a well-established actor and people like to see movies with actors they know.
I agree with you saying that movie appealed to pathos more than anything. The scene that stood out to you was very powerful to me too. I liked how you made the connection with Denzel Washington being a great actor to appeal to ethos. Great post :)
ReplyDeleteI think the scene you chose was a very powerful one and maybe I'm wrong but alng with Mr. Washington being used as an example of ethos all the people shown near the end of the film discussing healthcare and/or John Q's story also aided in adding ethos.( like Hilary Clinton)These are people who are well established in politics and social issues in America,some experts or activists,and others well known to the public and we can often see them in issues such as these.
ReplyDeleteThe boy was definitely perfect for the part. He was so cute and innocent that it almost made it even more unfair that he was dying. Also, I agree that Denzel Washington as an actor brought an element of ethos to the part. He is such a well-respected actor that in a weird way it seemed more ridiculous that he would take hostages in an emergency room, just as it was surprising that John Q would.
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