Alex Marsden is a heart surgeon so successful that he merits spreads in nonmedical journals. He is self-centered, quick, articulate and a success with the ladies, perhaps no so much as he imagines. He confesses to being unable to hold a long term relationship.
His best (and perhaps only) friends are Marcella and Larry Duggan, who own and operate a farm. Having chest pains, Larry is diagnosed in need of a bypass. Alex is reluctant to do the operation himself but finally agrees; due to special circumstances, failure (not probable, but possible) may mean the end of his career and worse.
This TV movie was broadcast in 1997 by BBC One World Productions in two episodes of 75 minutes each. Apparently there are (at least) two copies available: one 2 hours 30 minutes long (which suggests the TV episodes have been simply put together) and a short version of 2 hours, This is the copy I streamed, and there are no visible ill effects from the cutting (although I am curious about the rest).
I liked this film. Direction is fluid and dynamic with occasional edge-of-yor-seat suspense and no superfluous material. Acting is uniformly excellent, especially by Nigel Havers as the not-so-lovable Marsden. As a bonus you get a glimpse into the inner workings of a hospital, from offices to operating rooms.
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