''You Don't Know Jack'' is a 2010 American
made-for-television
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
biopic written by
Adam Mazer
Adam Mazer (born ) is an American screenwriter. He is the writer of HBO film’s biopic, '' You Don't Know Jack'', about the life of assisted-suicide advocate, Jack Kevorkian.
Mazer was the co-writer of the 2007 Universal Pictures feature film ...
and directed by
Barry Levinson
Barry Lee Levinson (born April 6, 1942) is an American filmmaker, comedian and actor. Levinson's best-known works are mid-budget comedy drama and drama films such as '' Diner'' (1982); ''The Natural'' (1984); ''Good Morning, Vietnam'' (1987); ' ...
. It stars
Al Pacino
Alfredo James Pacino (; ; born April 25, 1940) is an American actor. Considered one of the most influential actors of the 20th century, he has received numerous accolades: including an Academy Award, two Tony Awards, and two Primetime Emmy ...
,
John Goodman
John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is an American actor. He gained national fame for his role as the family patriarch Dan Conner in the ABC comedy series '' Roseanne'' (1988–1997; 2018), for which he received a Golden Globe Award, an ...
,
Danny Huston
Daniel Sallis Huston (born May 14, 1962) is an Italian-born American actor and film director. A member of the Huston family of filmmakers, he is the son of director John Huston and the half-brother of actress Anjelica Huston.
He is known for ...
,
Susan Sarandon
Susan Abigail Sarandon (; née Tomalin; born October 4, 1946) is an American actorMcCabe, Bruce"Susan Sarandon, the 'actor'" ''Boston Globe''. April 17, 1981. Retrieved January 21, 2021. and activist. She is the recipient of various accolades, ...
, and
Brenda Vaccaro
Brenda is a feminine given name in the English language.
Origin
The overall accepted origin for the female name Brenda is the Old Nordic male name ''Brandr'' meaning both ''torch'' and ''sword'': evidently the male name Brandr took root in area ...
.
The film dramatizes the efforts of former
Oakland County
Oakland County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is part of the metropolitan Detroit area, located northwest of the city. As of the 2020 Census, its population was 1,274,395, making it the second-most populous county in Michigan, b ...
,
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
,
pathologist
Pathology is the study of the causal, causes and effects of disease or injury. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when us ...
Dr.
Jack Kevorkian
Murad Jacob "Jack" Kevorkian (May 26, 1928 – June 3, 2011) was an American pathologist and euthanasia proponent. He publicly championed a terminal patient's right to die by physician-assisted suicide, embodied in his quote, "Dying is n ...
(Pacino) to help the
terminally ill
Terminal illness or end-stage disease is a disease that cannot be cured or adequately treated and is expected to result in the death of the patient. This term is more commonly used for progressive diseases such as cancer, dementia or advanced h ...
and the profoundly disabled
end their lives. The outspoken Kevorkian becomes a polarizing figure and he is often referred to as "Dr. Death" in the press. He is assisted by his sister Margo Janus (Vaccaro), his longtime friend and medical technician Neal Nicol (Goodman), and Janet Good (Sarandon), who founded the eastern Michigan chapter of the
Hemlock Society
The Hemlock Society (sometimes called Hemlock Society USA) was an American right-to-die and assisted suicide advocacy organization which existed from 1980 to 2003. It was co-founded in Santa Monica, California by British author and activi ...
. By accepted accounts, he aided 130 people to die.
Kevorkian is unsuccessfully tried four times, but after taking an unprecedented direct role in the August 1998 death of his final patient, Thomas Youk, he is convicted of second degree
murder
Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...
and is sentenced to 10 to 25 years in
prison
A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correc ...
. He serves over eight years and is released in June 2007.
''You Don't Know Jack's'' screenplay was based largely on the book ''Between the Dying and the Dead'' by Neal Nicol and Harry Wylie. The film received numerous award nominations. Al Pacino won
Primetime Emmy
The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...
,
Golden Globe, and
Screen Actors Guild
The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) was an American labor union which represented over 100,000 film and television principal and background performers worldwide. On March 30, 2012, the union leadership announced that the SAG membership voted to m ...
awards for his performance as Kevorkian. It received largely positive reviews and currently has a 91% rating at the aggregate film review website ''Rotten Tomatoes''.
Plot
Prompted by the plight of David Rivlin, a
quadriplegic
Tetraplegia, also known as quadriplegia, is defined as the dysfunction or loss of motor and/or sensory function in the cervical area of the spinal cord. A loss of motor function can present as either weakness or paralysis leading to partial or t ...
who litigated to be removed from his respirator so he can die, the sight of a dying woman in a
hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...
bed, and the memory of his mother Satenig's death over two decades earlier, Dr. Jack Kevorkian builds his first "Mercitron". out of parts bought at a
flea market
A flea market (or swap meet) is a type of street market that provides space for vendors to sell previously-owned (second-hand) goods. This type of market is often seasonal. However, in recent years there has been the development of 'formal' ...
. He meets with Rivlin and presents his device. Kevorkian explains that through an
intravenous line
Intravenous therapy (abbreviated as IV therapy) is a medical technique that administers fluids, medications and nutrients directly into a person's vein. The intravenous route of administration is commonly used for rehydration or to provide nutrie ...
, Rivlin can self-administer first a harmless
saline solution
Solution may refer to:
* Solution (chemistry), a mixture where one substance is dissolved in another
* Solution (equation), in mathematics
** Numerical solution, in numerical analysis, approximate solutions within specified error bounds
* Soluti ...
, followed by
thiopental
Sodium thiopental, also known as Sodium Pentothal (a trademark of Abbott Laboratories), thiopental, thiopentone, or Trapanal (also a trademark), is a rapid-onset short-acting barbiturate general anesthetic. It is the thiobarbiturate analog of p ...
that will cause him to fall into a
coma
A coma is a deep state of prolonged unconsciousness in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light, or sound, lacks a normal wake-sleep cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. Coma patients exhi ...
, and then
potassium chloride
Potassium chloride (KCl, or potassium salt) is a metal halide salt composed of potassium and chlorine. It is odorless and has a white or colorless vitreous crystal appearance. The solid dissolves readily in water, and its solutions have a salt ...
that will stop his
heart
The heart is a muscular organ in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon dioxide t ...
, thus causing death. Due to the expense and the difficulty of obtaining the drugs, Kevorkian later develops a less expensive method using tanks of
carbon monoxide
Carbon monoxide (chemical formula CO) is a colorless, poisonous, odorless, tasteless, flammable gas that is slightly less dense than air. Carbon monoxide consists of one carbon atom and one oxygen atom connected by a triple bond. It is the simple ...
. Rivlin, however, becomes agitated and Kevorkian is forced to leave. Rivlin is later removed from his respirator and food and water are withheld. In an interview with reporter Jack Lessenberry, Kevorkian denounces what he sees as the cruelty of his unnecessarily painful death, comparing it to the
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
. He believes that his "death machine" would've brought about a quicker and easier death, and begins offering his services as a "death counselor". His first patient is Janet Adkins, a 53
-year-old woman from
Portland
Portland most commonly refers to:
* Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States
* Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...
,
Oregon
Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
who is suffering from
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...
. The disease is in its early stages, but Adkins is increasingly suffering from memory loss and confusion. With Kevorkian's help, she dies on June 4, 1990. Soon after Kevorkian begins aiding people in earnest.
As Kevorkian's notoriety increases, he provokes polarizing public opinion. His supporters believe he is performing a public service and that the government has no right to interfere with the decisions of competent individuals who want to die. He insists that he gives his patients a means to end their suffering; they alone made the decision and initiated the process. He also claims to have turned down 97 or 98 percent of the people asking for his help. His critics, however, believe he is playing
God
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
.
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
Oakland County prosecutor Richard Thompson believes Kevorkian is a murderer, but can't gain a conviction; he attributes his failures to Michigan's weak laws regarding assisted suicide and advocates stronger laws. In 1998, Thompson loses an election to a more
liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
assistant prosecutor, David Gorcyca, who has no interest in wasting money (a major criticism of Thompson) prosecuting Jack Kevorkian as long as he only assists in suicides.
However, Thomas Youk's September 16, 1998 death is different. Youk, reputed to be Jack Kevorkian's final patient, is so crippled by
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most comm ...
(ALS) so he cannot self-administer the drugs. Kevorkian administers it personally. A video of Youk's death is presented as part of Kevorkian's interview with reporter
Mike Wallace
Myron Leon Wallace (May 9, 1918 – April 7, 2012) was an American journalist, game show host, actor, and media personality. He interviewed a wide range of prominent newsmakers during his seven-decade career. He was one of the original correspo ...
of the
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
news
News is information about current events. This may be provided through many different Media (communication), media: word of mouth, printing, Mail, postal systems, broadcasting, Telecommunications, electronic communication, or through the tes ...
program ''
60 Minutes
''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who chose to set it apart from other news programs by using a unique styl ...
''. It leads to him being
indicted
An indictment ( ) is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that use the concept of felonies, the most serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that do not use the felonies concept often use that of ...
. Despite the intervention of Youk's widow Melody and his brother Terry, he is convicted of second degree murder. Kevorkian represents himself while in previous cases, he was represented by attorney
Geoffrey Fieger
Geoffrey Nels Fieger (born December 23, 1950) is an American attorney based in Southfield, Michigan. Fieger is the senior partner at the law firm of Fieger, Fieger, Kenney & Harrington P.C., and is an occasional legal commentator for NBC and M ...
. He is sentenced to 10 to 25 years in prison.
Kevorkian Case: Video of killing shown to jury
/ref> He wants his case to be heard by the United States Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
so that the issue of assisted suicide can be decided. The Court declined to do so, however. Kevorkian is released in June 2007 after serving over eight years.
Cast
* Al Pacino
Alfredo James Pacino (; ; born April 25, 1940) is an American actor. Considered one of the most influential actors of the 20th century, he has received numerous accolades: including an Academy Award, two Tony Awards, and two Primetime Emmy ...
as Dr. Jack Kevorkian
Murad Jacob "Jack" Kevorkian (May 26, 1928 – June 3, 2011) was an American pathologist and euthanasia proponent. He publicly championed a terminal patient's right to die by physician-assisted suicide, embodied in his quote, "Dying is not ...
* Danny Huston
Daniel Sallis Huston (born May 14, 1962) is an Italian-born American actor and film director. A member of the Huston family of filmmakers, he is the son of director John Huston and the half-brother of actress Anjelica Huston.
He is known for ...
as Geoffrey Fieger
Geoffrey Nels Fieger (born December 23, 1950) is an American attorney based in Southfield, Michigan. Fieger is the senior partner at the law firm of Fieger, Fieger, Kenney & Harrington P.C., and is an occasional legal commentator for NBC and M ...
, Kevorkian's attorney
* Susan Sarandon
Susan Abigail Sarandon (; née Tomalin; born October 4, 1946) is an American actorMcCabe, Bruce"Susan Sarandon, the 'actor'" ''Boston Globe''. April 17, 1981. Retrieved January 21, 2021. and activist. She is the recipient of various accolades, ...
as Janet Good, a right-to-die advocate and patient
* Brenda Vaccaro
Brenda is a feminine given name in the English language.
Origin
The overall accepted origin for the female name Brenda is the Old Nordic male name ''Brandr'' meaning both ''torch'' and ''sword'': evidently the male name Brandr took root in area ...
as Margaret "Margo" Janus, Kevorkian's sister and assistant until her death in 1994
* John Goodman
John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is an American actor. He gained national fame for his role as the family patriarch Dan Conner in the ABC comedy series '' Roseanne'' (1988–1997; 2018), for which he received a Golden Globe Award, an ...
as Neal Nicol, Kevorkian's longtime friend and medical technician
* James Urbaniak
James Christian Urbaniak (born September 17, 1963) is an American character actor. He is best known for his roles as Simon Grim in three Hal Hartley films: '' Henry Fool'' (1997), '' Fay Grim'' (2006) and '' Ned Rifle'' (2014), Robert Crumb in ...
as Jack Lessenberry, a reporter
* Eric Lange
Eric Lange (born February 19, 1973) is an American actor. He is known for his work on television, where he has appeared in a wide variety of both Character role, supporting and leading roles.
Lange played the recurring roles of Stuart Radzinsky ...
as John Skrzynski, an assistant prosecutor
* John Engler
John Mathias Engler (born October 12, 1948) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 46th Governor of Michigan from 1991 to 2003. A member of the Republican Party, he later worked for Business Roundtable, where ''The Hill'' c ...
as himself (stock footage), Michigan governor
The governor of Michigan, is the head of government of Michigan and serves as the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws; the power to either approve or veto appropriation bills passed b ...
from 1991 to 2003
* Richard E. Council as Judge David Breck
* Sandra Seacat
Sandra Diane Seacat (born October 2, 1936) is an American actress, director and acting coach best known for her innovations in acting pedagogy—blending elements of Strasberg, and Jungian dream analysis as Janet Adkins, Kevorkian's first patient
* Adam Driver
Adam Douglas Driver (born November 19, 1983) is an American actor. He is the recipient of various accolades, including nominations for two Academy Awards, four Primetime Emmy Awards and a Tony Award; making him one of few performers nominated ...
as Glen Stetson, a fictitious character who is a paraplegic who tried to immolate himself and is turned down by Kevorkian and Janet Good
* Cotter Smith as Dick Thompson, Oakland County prosecutor from 1989 to 1996
* David Wilson Barnes
David Wilson Barnes (born October 30, 1972) is an American actor. He has appeared in '' Capote'' (2005), '' The Company Men'' (2010), '' The Bourne Legacy'' (2012) and '' Bridge of Spies'' (2015).
Barnes was born in San Diego, California. His ...
as David Gorcyca, Dick Thompson's successor as Oakland County prosecutor. Successfully prosecutes Kevorkian in the death of Thomas Youk
Awards and nominations
Notes
References
External links
*
*
*
*
{{Barry Levinson
2010 television films
2010 films
2010 biographical drama films
American biographical drama films
Films scored by Marcelo Zarvos
Films about euthanasia
Films directed by Barry Levinson
Films set in the 1990s
Films shot in Michigan
Films shot in New York City
Medical-themed films
HBO Films films
2010s English-language films
American drama television films
2010s American films