{"id":5270,"date":"2019-02-02T10:26:00","date_gmt":"2019-02-02T15:26:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/?p=5270"},"modified":"2022-10-25T16:56:16","modified_gmt":"2022-10-25T20:56:16","slug":"coma-1978-movie-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/coma-1978-movie-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Genevi\u00e8ve Bujold fights the medical patriarchy in Michael Crichton’s Coma"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A thriller set among medical professionals, with just enough scientific accuracy to temper its science fiction, and a craven corporation perverting science for profit? If only Michael Crichton<\/a>‘s Coma<\/em> had been set in an amusement park, it would have been the most Michael Crichton movie ever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than just a dry run for his hit TV series ER<\/em>, it’s also strikingly feminist — in some ways more than a similar thriller would be today. Not for nothing does an inciting incident involve an abortion subplot. Even Crichton’s own Westworld<\/a><\/em> (1973) barely included any female characters at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Genevi\u00e8ve Bujold plays an accomplished female surgeon who discovers and exposes a criminal conspiracy. She is unable to break through the dismissive armor of the establishment bureaucracy, or even her mansplaining boyfriend (Michael Douglas<\/a>) — an interesting character in that he is not so much an antagonist but an obstacle to her aims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She is left to battle alone against an entrenched medical patriarchy that stymies her with variations of “don’t rock the boat”, “you’re being hysterical”, and “take a valium”. Even a sequence in which she removes her stockings is no sexy striptease, but rather a symbolic shedding of constraints in her pursuit of the truth.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A thriller set among medical professionals, with just enough scientific accuracy to temper its science fiction, and a craven corporation perverting science for profit? If only Michael Crichton‘s Coma had been set in an amusement park, it would have been the most Michael Crichton movie ever. More than just a dry run for his hit […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5272,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[15,2],"tags":[1869,1909,835,47],"class_list":["post-5270","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-3-stars","category-movies","tag-1869","tag-genevieve-bujold","tag-michael-crichton","tag-michael-douglas"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/coma.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pa9lhB-1n0","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2009,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/westworld\/","url_meta":{"origin":5270,"position":0},"title":"The Vacation of the Future, Today: Westworld","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"May 28, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"The late Michael Crichton is primarily known as a bestselling novelist, but somewhat less so as a screenwriter, feature film director, and television producer (he was one of the co-creators of the blockbuster series E.R.). Characteristic novels Jurassic Park and The Andromeda Strain are built upon fascinating speculative science with\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2 Stars"","block_context":{"text":"2 Stars","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/2-stars\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/05\/westworld-movie.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/05\/westworld-movie.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/05\/westworld-movie.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/05\/westworld-movie.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/05\/westworld-movie.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":881,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/andromeda-strain-2008\/","url_meta":{"origin":5270,"position":1},"title":"It’s the end of the world in Michael Crichton’s The Andromeda Strain","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"June 9, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Michael Crichton's novel The Andromeda Strain was first adapted into a feature film in 1971, and now into a television miniseries from executive producers Tony and Ridley Scott. This 2008 incarnation is part feel-bad thriller, part wish fulfillment. As we thrill to the speculative illustration of how civilization might suddenly\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2 Stars"","block_context":{"text":"2 Stars","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/2-stars\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/andromeda-strain-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/andromeda-strain-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/andromeda-strain-feature.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/andromeda-strain-feature.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/andromeda-strain-feature.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1335,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/ridley-scott-black-rain\/","url_meta":{"origin":5270,"position":2},"title":"Michael Douglas vs. the yakuza in Ridley Scott’s Black Rain","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"November 26, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Ridley Scott's police thriller Black Rain (1989) opens in New York City at a time when The Meatpacking District actually was a meatpacking district. Tough cop Nick (Michael Douglas) is a ridiculously aggressive, foul-mouthed tough guy who tools around the city astride his crotch rocket. The despised Internal Affairs department\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2 Stars"","block_context":{"text":"2 Stars","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/2-stars\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/11\/black-rain-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/11\/black-rain-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/11\/black-rain-feature.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/11\/black-rain-feature.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/11\/black-rain-feature.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":716,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/michael-clayton\/","url_meta":{"origin":5270,"position":3},"title":"Michael Clayton confronts Shiva the God of Death","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"March 22, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Michael Clayton is a that rare thing: an intelligent, fictional thriller for grownups. Like any self-respecting Thriller for Grownups, it's relentlessly grim in tone, the chronology is fractured, and a high level of detail demands your attention. It doesn't approach impenetrability like Syriana, but it unfortunately doesn't engage the brain\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "4 Stars"","block_context":{"text":"4 Stars","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/4-stars\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Michael Clayton","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/03\/michael-clayton-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/03\/michael-clayton-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/03\/michael-clayton-feature.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/03\/michael-clayton-feature.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/03\/michael-clayton-feature.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1348,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/ridley-scott-gi-jane\/","url_meta":{"origin":5270,"position":4},"title":"Demi Moore goes chrome dome in Ridley Scott’s G.I. Jane","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"January 3, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Ridley Scott has made his share of testosterone-laden Hollywood flicks, ranging from his very first feature The Duellists, through Black Rain, and finally blowing the top off the scale with Gladiator. But unlike many of his contemporaries (Michael Mann and Michael Bay come to mind), a surprising number of feminist-themed\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2 Stars"","block_context":{"text":"2 Stars","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/2-stars\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"G.I. Jane","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/g-i-jane-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/g-i-jane-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/g-i-jane-feature.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/g-i-jane-feature.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/g-i-jane-feature.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5260,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/noomi-rapace-close-2018-netflix-movie-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":5270,"position":5},"title":"Noomi Rapace shoots ’em up in the Netflix exclusive Close","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"January 26, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Noomi Rapace was seemingly set for big things after The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo films, but was shortly thereafter cruelly written out of her starring role in Ridley Scott's Alien prequels. I can only imagine how it must hurt for an actor to \"appear\" in a sequel only as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2 Stars"","block_context":{"text":"2 Stars","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/2-stars\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Noomi Rapace Close","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/close-noomi-rapace.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/close-noomi-rapace.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/close-noomi-rapace.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/close-noomi-rapace.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/close-noomi-rapace.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5270","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5270"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5270\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7531,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5270\/revisions\/7531"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5272"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5270"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5270"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5270"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}