Reviews of the series “House MD” leave no choice - this masterpiece is on the must-see list. The described work reveals not only the complexity of medicine, as such, but also the intricacies of human relations. The creator of Dr. House masterfully demonstrates all the flaws of humanity and its extraordinary beauty in sympathy, the desire to move on and, of course, the ability to perceive everything with humor (or a drop of irony).
general description
"House" is an American television series, in the genre - a medical detective with moments of drama. The serial film tells the story of a brilliant diagnostician, specializing in two areas, namely: nephrology (for kidney disease) and infectious diseases. But geniuses find it difficult to get along in society. The main character is a closed cynic, a sharp rebel who did not hear about the rules of good form. His friend Forman (also a colleague at the same time) claims that "Gregory does not break the rules, he simply ignores them."
The doctor justifies his rudeness and ignorance by an unbearable pain in his leg (the man survived a difficult operation, now he can not spend a day without pain medication). Compassion House manifests in a special measure to those patients who, like him, experience chronic pain.
Despite everything, they admire him and try to help overcome his dependence on Vicodin. Throughout the seasons, doctors are supported by Wilson (best friend and oncologist) and Lisa Cuddy (endocrinologist). A team of young and promising interns has been accompanying House MD since season 1, changing the composition a bit.
Plot structure
How many episodes in Doctor House - so many new stories. But, despite this, the content of the series is very uniform. The great honor of the episodes begins outside the walls of the Princeton-Plainsboro Clinic, which is located in the eponymous town of Princeton, New Jersey. At the beginning of the series, a story is told that reveals the causes of the character's symptoms and a sharp deterioration in his condition. Later, a team of young doctors led by Gregory is trying to determine the disease through differential diagnosis.
Usually, three possible options are chosen and the most optimal treatment method. After some time, it turns out that the patient is getting worse and everything reaches a critical point. Then House manages to make the correct diagnosis, overcoming the resistance and distrust of loved ones, prescribes treatment.
Often, arrivals hide some facts that are directly related to the disease itself: drug addiction, an affair on the side, work and so on. Such lies and shortcomings interfere with the determination of the disease and are fatal. Why is the legendary phrase of Dr. Gregory House "Everyone lies!" always relevant.
The tension in the episode is diluted by the routine work of the protagonist. At these moments, the viewer can observe the qualitative irony and the brilliant mind of House (and his peculiar manner of communicating with people).
Medicine in the series
Reviews of the series “House MD” help beginners understand that the emphasis here is not on the operating table and diseases. The process of making a diagnosis is breathtaking, which is more like an investigation. In many episodes, it is possible to observe the illegal entry of two interns from a team into a patient’s house. Here, young doctors delve into everything (from garbage to personal items), hoping to find something that confirms the validity of the hypotheses put forward (or refutes).
The highlight, or refrain of the medical detective, was an autoimmune disease called lupus. It is offered as a possible diagnosis in almost every series. This is due to the large number of conflicting symptoms that are characteristic of the described disease. Vasculitis and sarcoidosis have also become so common.
History reference
Reviews of the series “House MD” unanimously reiterate that there is a close connection between a fictional detective named Sherlock Holmes and Gregory himself. One of the producers, David Shore, admitted that he is a true fan of the detective and admired his amazing indifference to the victims.
As for allusions, it is worth considering the main ones:
- the names of House and Holmes, as well as the names of John Watson and James Wilson are consonant;
- for several seasons, comrades live in the neighborhood;
- the apartment number is also symbolic - 221;
- the man who shot Gregory was Jack Moriarty (the resemblance is obvious here);
- the patient who won House's heart is Irene Adler (nothing to add).
With this information, you can look at the main character from a different angle and discover something new.
Pop culture
The popularity of the series bore fruit and was noted in many other works. For instance:
- The television series "Clinic" - a parody can be seen in two episodes of "My Doctor House" and "My Bastards."
- The animated series "The Simpsons". Fans recall how Marge killed Griffin, House, and Jack Bauer, who appeared from an advertisement, and then baked corpses in bread.
- The serial cartoon "Family Guy".
The Russian version of Doctor House is the television series Interns. The main role went to Ivan Okhlobystin, and the actors Dmitry Sharakois, Kristina Asmus, Ilya Glinnikov, Alexander Ilyin became members of the team. Well, the Russian series is notable for its relevant causticity, accurate diagnoses and humor close to us.
Mention of Gregory is present in the literary work of Sergei Lukyanenko, "The New Watch." A clear parallel is also being seen in the series "The Diary of Doctor Zaitseva."
Film crew
The creator of the legendary series is David Shore - a writer of Canadian origin, a winner of many awards, as well as a lawyer. To date, the man has made another masterpiece and continues to work on it - “The Good Doctor”.
The work of the producer was shared by Paul Attanasio, Katie Jacobs, Brian Singer, Thomas L. Moran, Russell Friend, Garrett Lerner, Greg Yaitans and Hugh Laurie. Over thirty directors worked on the creation of the episodes, including Peter Medak, Newton Thomas Siegel, Guy Ferland, Kate Gordon, Laura Innes and others.
Heartbreaking scripts were written by Garrett Lerner, Sarah Hess, Michael. R. Perry and John Mankevich. And yes, the opening intro is a composition of the Massive Atack band Teardrop.
Frontline actors
The main characters in "House" went to talented actors. Each was imbued with his character and showed the viewer his purpose to the maximum.
- Hugh Laurie as Dr. House. There are no ideas who could look just as harmonious in the frame. The most interesting thing is that the producers initially looked for a "typical American" for this role. In search of the perfect candidate, Brian Singer stumbled upon Hugh and was pleasantly surprised by his ingenuity. Only during the filming did they learn that Lori is a native Englishman.
- Lisa Edelstein played Lisa Cuddy. The actress well conveyed the daring temperament, the desire for justice and the femininity of the dean of the Faculty of Medicine and the head physician Princeton-Placeborough.
- Robert Sean Leonard got the role of James Wilson. A man is an example of altruism, kindness and sincerity. He is House's only true friend and an excellent oncologist.
House's team itself changes over time. Initial composition: Eric Forman (Omar Epps), working as a neurologist; Robert Chase (Jesse Spencer), resuscitator; Allison Cameron (Jennifer Morrison), immunologist. In the third season, team members are gradually eliminated.
Next, the group consisted of four doctors: Taub (Peter Jacobson), Kutner (Cal Penn) and Thirteenth (Olivia Wilde). Why four - Foreman returned. In the final season, new doctors Jessica Adams (Odette Annable) and Chi Pak (Charlene I) appeared.
World-famous people appeared as cameos and supporting characters. So, the criminal recidivist is the American rapper LL Cool J, the bartender was played by Fred Durst (vocalist of the Limp Bizkit band).
The reaction of critics and viewers
The first release date for Doctor House is November 16, 2004. From that moment on, all critics carefully relished each episode. So, the series was compared with the light on the background of the then program of the Fox channel. Matt Roush wrote that "work is an unusual medicine for the genre of medical drama and detective." Bianculli did not leave indifferent the high-class play of the actors and the script developed. Some critics did not see something interesting in the series and called it mediocre and unoriginal.
What about the audience, the overwhelming number of reviews of the series “House MD” is characterized by frenzied delight, incredible admiration and the desire to imitate. Many were worried about the Gregory team, some lived from series to series, hoping for a cherished kiss of Cuddy and House. And absolutely everyone shared the work of specialists and determined the accuracy of the diagnosis.
Confession
Well, for this we should highlight a separate article. After all, the series took part in 170 nominations and won more than fifty awards.
So, in 2005, David Shore won the Best Scripted Drama Series nomination at the Prime Time Emmy Award. Three years later, another victory - Greg Yaitans won the award for "The best direction of a drama television series." For two consecutive years, Hugh Laurie was awarded the title "Best Actor in a Television Drama Series" at the Golden Globe Award. This list of achievements of this picture is not limited.