Sicko
Michael Moore turns denied treatments and international healthcare comparisons into a humorous, impassioned indictment of profit-driven American medicine.
Overview
A provocative exploration of healthcare in America that challenges the status quo and asks tough questions about who we are as a society.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- None
- witty
- sardonic
- impassioned
- political discussion night
- social issues screening
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as an accessible, touching, and forceful healthcare critique, while disputing its selective evidence and rosy treatment of foreign systems.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Moore places U.S. HMOs alongside healthcare experiences in Canada, the U.K., France, and Cuba.
Moore combines comedic presentation with interviews, historical investigation, and pointed criticism of healthcare bureaucracy.
Patients, doctors, expatriates, volunteers, and policy figures contribute competing or complementary accounts of medical access.
The film centers on profit-oriented HMOs, denied treatments, medical debt, and the consequences for American patients.
Films like Sicko, and why
Bowling for Columbine
Shared investigative documentary approach, political advocacy, institutional critique, and confrontational humor.
Fahrenheit 9/11
Shared Michael Moore authorship, populist argumentation, satirical tone, and examination of American institutions.
The Waiting Room
Shared focus on healthcare systems, social inequality, and emotionally direct documentary storytelling.
Inside Job
Shared critique of corporate power and public institutions through interviews, evidence, and accessible political argument.
Movie Details
- Director
- Michael Moore
- Release Date
- 2007-05-18
- Runtime
- 123 min
- Rating
- 7.4 / 10 (812)
Cast
- Michael Moore
- Tony Benn
- Tucker Albrizzi
- Reggie Cervantes
- John Graham
- Aleida Guevara
- Bill Maher
- Patrick Pedraja
- Linda Peeno
- Billy Crystal
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Lionsgate+ Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Sicko about?
- Michael Moore turns denied treatments and international healthcare comparisons into a humorous, impassioned indictment of profit-driven American medicine.
- What is Sicko like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Sicko as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Sicko violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in Sicko.
- What did critics think of Sicko?
- Critics broadly praised the film as an accessible, touching, and forceful healthcare critique, while disputing its selective evidence and rosy treatment of foreign systems.
- Which films are like Sicko?
- Films with a similar feel include Bowling for Columbine, Fahrenheit 9/11, The Waiting Room, and Inside Job.
- How long is Sicko?
- Sicko runs 123 minutes.
- Where can I watch Sicko?
- In United States, Sicko streams on Lionsgate+ Amazon Channel.
