Doctors Without Borders (aka Médecins Sans Frontières) is a medical aid organization that since 1971 has been sending doctors and nurses all over the world, working in over 60 countries to bring badly needed treatment to people whose lives are threatened by either man-made or natural catastrophes. Working in some of the poorest and most devastated corners of the globe, the men and women of Doctors Without Borders are willing to travel wherever they are needed, remaining nonpartisan when working
in a nation at war and providing care for all who need it regardless of religious, political, or national affiliation. Filmmaker Mark Hopkins has created a powerful look at this organization and the people who make it work in the documentary Living in Emergency: Stories of Doctors Without Borders. While a large number of medical professionals volunteer to work with DWB, the Paris-based organization accepts only a small percentage, having learned through experience that the demands of working in the midst of war, natural disaster, or an epidemic is more than many of them are able to deal with. And while the film documents the group's many successes around the world, Hopkins and the healers he profiles are clearly aware of the high stakes they deal with, and that doing the right thing is sometimes an uphill battle with fewer rewards than one might hope. Living in Emergency was an official selection at the 2009 Miami International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
With limited resources, the MSF is compelled to fly from crisis to crisis, and there is never any real closure. The film shows us the anger and disbelief of those left behind.
These doctors are hard on themselves and on one another, and as Living in Emergency chronicles their small triumphs and large frustrations, a larger picture emerges, almost despite the film's avowedly local emphasis.
Dynamic, informal and observant yet, while never grueling, it offers a constant provocative contrast between backgrounds of spectacular and beautiful natural scenery and primitive living conditions.
An arresting if limited film about the work of the medical-humanitarian group Médecins Sans Frontières, whose volunteer doctors provide emergency aid in some of the world's poorest, wartorn countries.
Some of the purely medical scenes here will test your capacity for human suffering, but that's a minuscule impression of horrors these doctors face daily in far-flung corners of the globe.
An unblinking portrait of the French humanitarian organization and, ultimately, a positive one ... It's a distressing film to watch, but it's not without hope.
Like a good non-fiction film should, Living in Emergency simply presents its observations. Then you get to decide for yourself if you feel bad, glad, mad or willing to add
The true stories and struggles depicted are gripping -- more so than most medical dramas. Collectively, four doctors represent a revealing cross section of Doctors Without Borders volunteers, and provide insights about how the NGO operates.
"Living in Emergency" is an insightful documentary about Medicins Sans Frontieres(Doctors without Borders) and their operations, focusing on the critical spots of Liberia and the Congo. The former is pulling itself out of the wreckage after a long civil war while the latter is still a war zone. Despite the risk,
there are many doctors who volunteer but few are accepted to work alongside native doctors in their countries. There seems to be little to unite the volunteers except there are a lot of heavy smokers amongst them for some reason. One volunteer said he did not like working in the corporate health care system of the United States. The job is difficult with a typical mission lasting about six months. Very few return for a second one because no matter how hard they try, it is only a drop in the bucket. In many parts of the developing world, there is very little health infrastructure to build on and this is "low grade medicine," oftentimes involving preventable diseases.(One doctor comments that his grandfather would have been comfortable in these surroundings.) Good luck with finding a CT scan but at least I know now what kind of drill bit to use to drill into somebody's head.(By the way, this documentary is not for the squeamish.) Since there are so many people without adequate healthcare in the world, difficult choices have to be made about which countries receive aid. After the screening, a fellow audience member mentioned that he felt sad and angry. I cannot really disagree with him, except to say that I also felt a little hope that there are people like these who are trying to make a difference.
August 11, 2010
Walter M.
Super Reviewer
Though difficult to watch in spots, it is well worth your time.
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