1962's "The Interns" is sort of the "Valley of the Dolls" of the hospital set, with a lot of young actors starting their careers in movies: Michael Callan, Nick Adams, James MacArthur, Anne Helm, Stefanie Powers, and some veterans - Telly Savalas, Buddy Ebsen and Cliff Robertson. The gorgeous model Suzy Parker, who had been getting film roles since the '50s but wasn't much of an actress, plays Robertson's love interest. Since by 1962 there was no studio system to bring these actors along, most of them wound up having careers in television and were a big part of my growing up years.
Very much a soap opera, "The Interns" today seems overdone and not particularly well acted. The plot deals with mercy killing, abortion, sexism and Dexedrine; it focuses on three doctors: Michael Callan, a user who is romancing two women, one with money (Anne Helm) and one so he can get a residency with her old boss; James MacArthur, a straight arrow who falls in love with a nurse with a yen for travel (Stefanie Powers); and Cliff Robertson, an older intern who tries to help his model girlfriend (Parker) terminate a pregnancy. Nick Adams plays a buffoon who falls in love with a terminally ill patient (Ellen Davalos).
It's hard to give an opinion on this film in 2008, after such excellent TV shows as "Saint Elsewhere" and "ER" - in the beginning of the movie, a woman dies, and James MacArthur has to pry her hand from his arm. Anyone who's ever read or seen a mystery or watched a medical show knows rigor doesn't set in that fast. This makes me wonder if any of the blood pressure readings made sense, though the description and treatment for thalassemia seemed correct, since bone marrow transplantation was still in the experimental stages.
All in all, pretty dated and routine when seen today.
