Die Lebenden reparieren

An hymn to the importance and, at the same time, fragility of life. Every single moment has been carefully planned to weaved together a multitude of strands which will only make sense at the end. Every human being play a fundamental role in the game of life: never forget that! This film is a reality check to remind us that we are here for a higher purpose even if we can't yet see it. If you are looking for an inspirational story, look no further: a must watch!

If this film had been made in Hollywood it would have vomit inducing. Because it's french it's anything but. A simple story, told without sentiment, but so poignant and real. All the characters are like people you almost know, with hints about them and their lives even of the smaller parts. The technical aspects of the medical procedures are twinned with the real care and involvement of the staff. There is a great scene where a nurse is ticked off by her superior but stands her ground and he backs off. Somehow that was thrilling. It's also about people trying to control their lives, not what others want. In the end it's so life enhancing without any soppiness. What a treat!

Surgeons at work, a young ocean surfer and a middle-aged woman with a terminal ailment, collide together like erratic waves and shifting currents. The sea serves as a metaphor and transition point in this drama about diverse lives connecting, the nuances of human interaction under trying circumstances and dealing with the unexpected.

Heal the Living includes some fantastic and heart-rending scenes including; a teen racing uphill in the city to greet his love, a police escort in the night for precious medical cargo, a message to an unconscious boy and spending what may be the last moments with someone before they die.

The filmmakers deftly portray the professional nonchalance, human sensitivity (or lack thereof), amazing skillfulness and bewildering medical technology of surgeons and their assistants. The physical operations performed by the surgeons are shown in admirable and excruciating detail. I had to look away more than once. Hospital politics are delved into with doctors bickering over the limits of treating people with compassion. The film is based on Maylis de Kerangal's novel Mend the Living. According to the director at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival premiere, the author was consulted for the movie, did not always agree with certain scenes, but liked the final result. My only wish is for deeper dialogue and a faster pace at times. Wonderful imagery of surfing and the sea.

I cannot write a full review, because I stopped watching after noticing that the movie was wasting my time. Most of the time I saw people walk, drive, or do nothing, which did not in the least contribute to the story.

Apparently the movie makers had to do that to stretch the story, which could perhaps have been told in 20 minutes, to movie length.

The movie might be good to watch for people who only rarely watch movies or for old people who are still used to very slow story development from the old days. Today this movie is just impertinent.

Katell Quillévéré's film 'Heal the Living' takes a look at the modern miracle of organ transplants; and the grim truth that the best source of donor material is often the otherwise undamaged body of someone unfortunate enough to die of sudden, localised shock. We see the personal stories of the families of the dead, and the potentially revitalised; we also get glimpses of the medical staff. Their situations are nicely realised, with humanity but without melodrama; however, there's a little too much emotional music to tell us that this is a life or death story in case for any reason we have failed to notice. I like it, but Kieslowski would have done it better in an hour.