Introduction: Nick Cassavetes' film uses the pentadic structure to establish meaning using the goal approach. The agent, the agency, the actor and the scene are always present; however, they are not the main focus of the story. John Q aligns perfectly with the dramatic perspective. The purpose of this film review is to conduct a dramatic analysis of John Q, examining how the concepts of the pentad and absolution of guilt are used to justify John's criminal actions. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Background: The film opens with a woman driving recklessly on a mountain highway. After being hit by two trucks, she is killed. John Quincy Archibald and his wife Denise watch their young son Michael collapse during his baseball game. After a series of tests at the hospital, John is informed by the doctor that Michael has an enlarged heart and will need a transplant. However, because the company he works for moved John from full-time to part-time, his health insurance was changed and the new policy does not cover the surgery, requiring them to collect 30% of the $250,000 to get their son's name. on the donor list. The family tries to scrape together the money but can barely raise a third of the necessary payment. Eventually, the hospital gets tired of waiting and decides to release Michael, leading Denise to tell John to "do something". Thesis Statement: Unwilling to let his child die and with no options, John goes to the hospital with padlocks, chains, and a gun to hold everyone hostage. While dealing with police Lt. Grimes, John reveals that all he wants is for his son to be put on the donor list to receive a new heart. After realizing that the police don't care if John's son is alive or not, he makes a new request to take his son to the emergency room with him. Evidence and Quote: Once his son arrives, John reveals to the hostages his intention to kill himself so that his heart can be used to save his son. He persuades Dr. Turner to perform the operation, and two of his hostages bear witness to a will stating his final request. John goes to say his last goodbyes to Michael and goes to the operating room. He loads a bullet into the gun and pulls the trigger but the safety is on. As he raises the gun to his head a second time and prepares to end his life, his wife learns the story of a woman killed in a car accident, that of the opening scene, who happens to have the same blood type as Michael, and was flown to the hospital to have his organs retrieved. She runs to the emergency room and stops John from shooting himself, and John allows the hostages to go free. Michael receives the life-saving operation and, after observing the procedure with Denise, John is taken into custody. The pentad, containing act, agent, agency, scene, and purpose, can be applied to John Q in order to understand why John's breaking of society's norms is justified. The act is simply the behavior that violates societal norms, and in this case the act is clearly John taking everyone in the emergency room hostage. Normally, this is something that would not be accepted by society. John ignores the fact that there are other people on the list of recipients who are no less deserving than his son Mike. The agent is the person carrying out the illegal behavior, and that is undoubtedly John Archibald. The agency designates the tools and means that the agentused. John uses padlocks and chains to prevent his hostages from fleeing and a gun to keep them under his control. He also uses the telephone to communicate with people outside the hospital, most often with the police. The scene is the hospital, because it is the setting in which the behavior takes place. The scene is kind or ironic because people go to the hospital to get treatment and feel better, but here they are being held hostage in this very sanctuary. Purpose, which is the most vital aspect of the pentad in this film, relates to why the agent engages in rule-breaking behavior. Commentary: John's justification for his criminal actions is that he was wronged by the health care system. No one was willing to look beyond the dollars and help his son, so he put the lives of others, as well as his own, on the line for the sake of his endangered son. The five aspects of the Pentad provide the basis for John's absolution from guilt. Topic Sentence: The message of the film is that if a person finds themselves in a difficult enough situation, they will do everything they can to protect their loved ones. . This is easily seen in this film. Commentary: Throughout the film, John is portrayed as a good-hearted, hard-working, and productive member of society. The last thing you would think he would do is take over a hospital at gunpoint. He did what he had to do to keep his son from dying. This is why the goal is the most important of the five aspects of the Pentad because it justifies one's actions. Everything he did was to save the lives of his young boys. Even when John took hostages, he was kind to them. John and the eleven hostages communicate and learn more and more about each other. They begin to understand John's situation and support him a little as he makes sure each of them gets the treatment they came to the ER for. He provided them with the medical care they sought at the hospital even though they were his “hostages”. Not only did the hostages and a huge crowd gather around the hospital hoping that John would get what he wanted, but I, as a spectator, was really hoping that he would get the transplant. his son. The film made me think that if America's healthcare system was more like Canada's, low-income families would not be forced to take desperate measures in desperate situations like the one depicted in this film. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. a custom paper now written by our expert writers.Get a custom essayConclusion Paragraph: John Q is a dangerous and sincere example of dramatism. It's hard, as a viewer, not to root for John as he takes matters into his own hands. In fact, even his hostages after their release; tell the reporters that John is a great man, a hero of sorts. The viewer even discovers in the final minutes of the film that John's gun was not loaded with ammunition the entire time and that he never intended to kill anyone. He was simply doing what was necessary to get the police to comply with his requests. The playwright's concept of the pentad can be easily applied to John Q, the key point being that the purpose of the hostage situation is to put Mike's name on the heart's recipient list. Furthermore, John's guilt can be absolved after considering him to be motivated either by transcendence (his son's life) or by the age of the victim (the healthcare system failed his family). It is also important to note the film's potential implications, such as criticism of the American healthcare system and.