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Awakenings Movie Analysis

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The movie Awakenings is directed by Penny Marshall in the year 1990. Given the title Awakenings, the movie was about the dream of a doctor named Dr. Malcolm Sayer portrayed by Robin Willliams, whose goal is to cure the survivors of the outbreak of Encephalitis Lethargica and was paralyzed by Parkinson’s disease for decades. Dr. Sayer treated them by a miracle drug: Levo-dopa that was able to revive them again. After these awakenings, the true problems unveil, between the benefits and the counter side effects of the drug and the patients that weren’t able to accept the reality in time they have missed. This is some of the different factors of the movie that contributed to inspire works Dr. Sayer throughout the movie, which is the purpose of this paper. Dr. Malcolm Sayer is a shy, absent minded, and a plant loving neurologists. He used to work in a laboratory before. He was put in charge of several seemingly catatonic patients at the Bronx psychiatric hospital. There he proves that he was a determined and a caring doctor. He discovered that there is certain stimulus that the patients show responsive. Lucy Fishman caught his attention and he offers a complete visual field by painting the floor tiles with the help of …show more content…

The truly inspirational thing about this movie is the inspiration behind which is Mr. Oliver Sacks. He was Hailed by The New York Times Book Review as "one of the great clinical writers of the 20th century. Recently he died on August 30, 2015. Dr. Malcolm Sayer shows the true spirit of a doctor. A doctor who would do everything just to help the helpless. He even sacrifice his entire life for searching for the right drug. The human spirit should not be forgotten. Simple things matter the most. “The human spirit is more powerful than any drug and THAT is what needs to be nourished: with work, play, friendship, family. THESE are the things that matter.” Dr. Oliver

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