If you liked Not as a Stranger, you're going to want to rent The Young Doctors. It follows a group of first-year doctors joining a hospital. Not only are there the usual hurdles, like losing sleep, getting lost in the corridors, workload overload, and adjusting to hierarchy and red tape; but each new doctor has his own personal struggle. Ben Gazzara is a pathologist, butting heads with the head honcho Fredric March, who's been in charge for decades. Ben falls in love with a nurse, Ina Balin, who has secrets of her own. Dick Clark's wife is expecting a baby, but they're both nervous about it because of their previous attempt.
Fredric March has class, confidence, and presence, owning every inch of the screen. Ben Gazzara has a different type of energy, the Paul Newman bad-boy generation of upstarts; but it's obvious he loves his field as much as his predecessor. Just like Not as a Stranger, there are criticisms and praises for the medical establishment in the story. We all wish doctors were all-knowing and could cure everything, but that's not the way it is. This film could have been made today, which is remarkable how little things have changed. With just a computer and a cell phone or two, a word-for-word remake could be filmed in the 2020s. Interesting, well-acted, and a story that keeps you guessing until the end, rent this one for a stimulating evening.
