“Service to Man,” Sun., Oct. 16, 11:30 a.m., Wichita Scottish Rite Center, 93 min.
In 1967, both Eli Rosenberg and Michael Dubois have a problem. For Eli, only one medical school in the country will accept him: Meharry Medical College, an all-Black medical school in Tennessee, a considerable distance from his life in Brooklyn, New York. For Michael, only one medical school in the country will do for him: Meharry Medical College, his successful father’s alma mater, and therefore his, whether he likes it or not. Both Eli and Michael are outsiders from radically different backgrounds forced to work together inside the pressure cooker of medical school in the turbulent 1960s.
In this movie, inspired by a true story, the two are at odds from the very moment they meet. They not only clash with each other, they battle the indecipherable mysteries of medicine, two warring professors, and a student body warily distrustful of both of them. Ultimately, it is upon the anvil of riot and revolution on the day of Dr. King’s assassination, that each must answer the question that has haunted them from the beginning: is a physician, a healer, in service of self, or is their true calling “Service to Man?”
This movie is competing for the Vimeo Stubbornly Independent Gala Award, which includes a $5,00 cash prize, a theater rental from AMC Theaters and more.