Main Cast: Robie Porter, Melissa Torme-March, James Coburn, Jennifer O'Neill, Pat Hingle, Skye Aubrey, Elizabeth Allen
Release Year: 1972
Country: US
Run Time: 101 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Blake Edwards directed this murder mystery set against the backdrop of a busy metropolitan hospital. Dr. Peter Carey (James Coburn) is a pathologist who has signed on to work with Dr. J.D. Randall (Dan O'Herlihy) at a prominent hospital in Boston. When Randall's daughter Karen (Melissa Torme-March) dies after a botched abortion, another member of the hospital staff, David Tao (James Hong), is charged with her murder. Carey is convinced that Tao is innocent and sets out to prove his point. He also finds time for romance with beautiful Bostonian Georgia Hightower (Jennifer O'Neill). The Carey Treatment features Pat Hingle as police detective Peterson; Michael Crichton contributed to the screenplay. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Dan O'Herlihy - Dr. J.D. Randall; Steve Carlson - Walding; Alex Dreier - Dr. Joshua Randall; Rosemary Edelman - Janet Tao; Jennifer Edwards - Lydia; John Fink - Murphy; John Hillerman - Jenkins; Robert Mandan - Dr. Barr; Warren Parker - Blaine; Morgan Sterne - Weston; Regis Toomey - Dr. Sanderson; Michael Blodgett - Roger Hudson; James Hong - David Tao; Robie Porter - Harvey William Randall; Melissa Torme-March - Karen Randall
Credit
Alfred Sweeney - Art Director, Jack Bear - Costume Designer, Newt Arnold - First Assistant Director, Blake Edwards - Director, Ralph Winters - Editor, Roy Budd - Composer (Music Score), Frank Stanley - Cinematographer, William Belasco - Producer, Ray Molyneaux - Set Designer, Charles M. Wilborn - Sound/Sound Designer, Harry W. Tetrick - Sound/Sound Designer, John D.F. Black - Screenwriter, James P. Bonner - Screenwriter, Michael Crichton - Screenwriter, Harriet Frank, Jr. - Screenwriter, Irving Ravetch - Screenwriter, Michael Crichton - Book Author, Jeffery Hudson - Book Author
Dr. Peter Carey (James Coburn) is a pathologist who moves to Boston, where he starts working in an hospital. He soon meets Georgia Hightower (Jennifer O'Neill), with whom he falls in love. Evelyn Randall, daughter of the hospital's Chief Doctor, becomes pregnant and is brought to the emergency department after an illegal abortion. She dies there, and Dr. David Tao (James Hong), a brilliant surgeon and friend of Carey, is arrested and accused of being responsible for the illegal abortion. Carey does not believe his friend to be guilty and starts investigating on his own, despite strong opposition by the police and the doctors around the hospital's chief.
The Carey Treatment received mostly mediocre to negative reviews. Roger Ebert wrote, "The problem is in the script. There are long, sterile patches of dialog during which nothing at all is communicated. These are no doubt important in order to convey the essential meaninglessness of life, but how can a director make them interesting? Edwards tries."[1]Vincent Canby of The New York Times was amused by the film but wrote, "...I don't think we have to take this too seriously,, for 'The Carey Treatment,' like so many respectable private-eye movies, is sustained almost entirely by irrelevancies."[2]
