Just when I finished reading the 30+ page TIME article about our broken medical system, I go see this movie. It’s a very verite look at a public hospital’s ER department. People spend hours, even days, waiting for medical help (more like a free clinic that an ER). Most of them don’t have insurance and many don’t have jobs. Meanwhile, the staff patiently and empathetically tries to deal with the backlog. While only 2 stories are followed in detail, there are glimpses of many more…and this is one of the film’s flaws. It shows a mass of problems without solutions, preaching or emotional investment. It effectively spotlights the issue, but doesn’t make for especially moving cinema. (Part of Criterion’s Doc Week)