Overview
A darkly comedic exploration of life, death, and unexpected romance in a chaotic hospital setting.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- witty
- sardonic
- bleak
- classic film night
- dark comedy night
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as an intelligent, sharply funny institutional satire elevated by George C. Scott and Diana Rigg, while noting that its tonal shifts and increasingly contrived ending can weaken its impact.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The hospital's bureaucratic failures and insensitive medical staff are treated through sustained gallows humor.
The unexplained patient deaths and negligent hospital culture expose structural failures in modern medicine.
Barbara's connection with Bock counters his suicidal despair, personal isolation, and loss of purpose.
The spate of inexplicable deaths initially appears connected to hospital dysfunction before being identified as murders.
Films like The Hospital, and why
Network
shared institutional satire, dark humor, and serious social critique beneath a comic surface
Being There
shared urban absurdism, mordant comedy, and protagonists confronting dehumanizing institutions
The King of Comedy
shared workplace dysfunction, black comedy, and escalating mystery within a large institution
M*A*S*H
shared medical setting, bleak humor, and critique of professional systems that neglect human lives
Movie Details
- Director
- Arthur Hiller
- Release Date
- 1971-12-14
- Runtime
- 103 min
- Rating
- 6.6 / 10 (115)
Cast
- George C. Scott
- Diana Rigg
- Barnard Hughes
- Richard Dysart
- Stephen Elliott
- Donald Harron
- Andrew Duncan
- Nancy Marchand
- Jordan Charney
- Roberts Blossom
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- fuboTV, MGM+ Amazon Channel, Philo, MGM Plus Roku Premium Channel, MGM Plus
- 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 The Hospital about?
- A suicidal New York physician finds an unlikely reason to live while investigating a deadly conspiracy inside his failing hospital.
- What is The Hospital like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Hospital as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Hospital violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Hospital as mild.
- What did critics think of The Hospital?
- Critics broadly praised the film as an intelligent, sharply funny institutional satire elevated by George C. Scott and Diana Rigg, while noting that its tonal shifts and increasingly contrived ending can weaken its impact.
- Which films are like The Hospital?
- Films with a similar feel include Network, Being There, The King of Comedy, and M*A*S*H.
- How long is The Hospital?
- The Hospital runs 103 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Hospital?
- In United States, The Hospital streams on fuboTV, MGM+ Amazon Channel, Philo, MGM Plus Roku Premium Channel, MGM Plus.
