This is an enjoyable entry into the Dr. Kildare series--the last one which featured Kildare. However, it is NOT the final film of the series--as there would be six more Kildare-less films in the series. Why? Well, Kildare (Lew Ayres) was a conscientious objector during WWII and served as an orderly in the war--and this didn't sit well with the American public. So, his part was written out and various young doctors took his place--including Philip Dorn, Van Johnson and Keye Luke. These later films are still worth seeing--as the grouchy old Dr. Gillespie (Lionel Barrymore) and Nurse Byrd (Alma Kruger) continued offering excellent support to the new cast members.
The film begins with a super-morbid opening scene. There's a dead body in the emergency room--and the staff reacts to it very matter-of-factly--joking and treating it all very lightly. My favorite of these tacky lines was the receptionist (Blossom Rock) referring to there being 'another one for the ice box'! I actually appreciated this, as too often hospital shows and films portray staff as being annoyingly noble.
The main two plots of this film involve Dr. Kildare working through the recent death of his fiancé (from the last film) as well as the hospital working through a policy which actually might cost lives. As for Kildare, he seemed like a big dummy, as he saved the life of a nice débutante who was MORE than willing to marry him or do anything else to help perk him up (double-entendre DEFINITELY intended) and Kildare repeatedly rebuffed her. All in all, the film had everything you like about the films--great dialog, enjoyable characters and nice pacing--a typical sort of MGM entry into the series. However, it is odd that after this film, Kildare is never mentioned again in the films.
The film begins with a super-morbid opening scene. There's a dead body in the emergency room--and the staff reacts to it very matter-of-factly--joking and treating it all very lightly. My favorite of these tacky lines was the receptionist (Blossom Rock) referring to there being 'another one for the ice box'! I actually appreciated this, as too often hospital shows and films portray staff as being annoyingly noble.
The main two plots of this film involve Dr. Kildare working through the recent death of his fiancé (from the last film) as well as the hospital working through a policy which actually might cost lives. As for Kildare, he seemed like a big dummy, as he saved the life of a nice débutante who was MORE than willing to marry him or do anything else to help perk him up (double-entendre DEFINITELY intended) and Kildare repeatedly rebuffed her. All in all, the film had everything you like about the films--great dialog, enjoyable characters and nice pacing--a typical sort of MGM entry into the series. However, it is odd that after this film, Kildare is never mentioned again in the films.