Dar-se Conta

Public (as opposed to private) hospitals in Argentina are supposed to treat patients free of charge; donations from the patient or the patient's family are encouraged but not required. Surprisingly, many hospitals manage to provide first rate care; physicians and nurses give their best on a daily basis in spite of their meager salaries and limited resources. I experimented this first hand in the Hospital de Niños (Children's Hospital) in Buenos Aires in 1972; the patient was my daughter.

One cannot but rejoice that the subject has been given coverage in this movie. Unfortunately the script by director Alejandro Doria and Jacob Langsner is overly dramatic, at times touching soap opera. Some actors (especially Luis Brandoni and China Zorrilla) are feed plenty of cliché lines, others (like Darío Grandinetti) fare better. The reaction of Juan's family to his problem is no doubt conceivable but atypical.

My initial reaction to this movie was somewhat negative. However, it brings to light a reality worth knowing and thus compensates its weaknesses.