The English Surgeon (film)
Encyclopedia
The English Surgeon is a film, which premiered at the London Film Festival
on 1 October 2007.
hospital full of desperate patients and makeshift equipment, but it is ultimately not a medical film—it is about a man, Henry Marsh
, and his partnership with Ukrainian colleague Igor Petrovich, and their struggle with moral, ethical and professional issues.
Henry's emotional journey takes him to visit the mother of a young girl he couldn't save some years ago, intercut with the current dilemma of a young man called Marian, dying of a brain tumour said to be inoperable in Ukraine. Marian has come to Kiev
hoping that Henry can save him. He thinks he can, but only if Marian is awake throughout the entire operation.
With an original soundtrack
composed and performed by Nick Cave
and Warren Ellis
, the film is set in a bleak Ukrainian landscape as Henry and his colleague Igor Petrovich struggle against massive logistical odds and the wrath of the old Soviet health system.
London Film Festival
The BFI London Film Festival is the UK's largest public film event, screening more than 300 features, documentaries and shorts from almost 50 countries. The festival, , currently in its 54th year, is run every year in the second half of October under the umbrella of the British Film Institute...
on 1 October 2007.
Synopsis
The English Surgeon is shot in a UkrainianUkraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
hospital full of desperate patients and makeshift equipment, but it is ultimately not a medical film—it is about a man, Henry Marsh
Henry Marsh (neurosurgeon)
Henry Thomas Marsh, CBE, FRCS is a leading British neurosurgeon, and a pioneer of neurosurgical advances in Ukraine.Marsh attended the Dragon School in Oxford....
, and his partnership with Ukrainian colleague Igor Petrovich, and their struggle with moral, ethical and professional issues.
Henry's emotional journey takes him to visit the mother of a young girl he couldn't save some years ago, intercut with the current dilemma of a young man called Marian, dying of a brain tumour said to be inoperable in Ukraine. Marian has come to Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
hoping that Henry can save him. He thinks he can, but only if Marian is awake throughout the entire operation.
With an original soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
composed and performed by Nick Cave
Nick Cave
Nicholas Edward "Nick" Cave is an Australian musician, songwriter, author, screenwriter, and occasional film actor.He is best known for his work as a frontman of the critically acclaimed rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, established in 1984, a group known for its eclectic influences and...
and Warren Ellis
Warren Ellis (musician)
Warren Ellis is an Australian multi-instrumentalist and composer, best known for his work with Dirty Three, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds and Grinderman and his soundtrack scores with Nick Cave. He plays violin, piano, bouzouki, guitar, flute, mandolin, and tenor guitar...
, the film is set in a bleak Ukrainian landscape as Henry and his colleague Igor Petrovich struggle against massive logistical odds and the wrath of the old Soviet health system.