Decades ago, philanthropist Stan Brock started Remote Area Medical as a way to bring medical care to the most far-flung places, such as rural villages in Africa and South America, where the closest hospital might be a multiday journey away. But he soon realized there was a big need in less isolated spots. Now, a majority of the foundation’s resources are devoted to staging pop-up clinics in the United States, where health care might be nearby but, for some, financially unreachable.
The documentary “Remote Area Medical” chronicles three days in the life of one of these temporary clinics. In 2012, filmmakers Jeff Reichert and Farihah Zaman headed to a NASCAR speedway in Bristol, Tenn., to see Brock and his army of volunteers at work. And what starts out mainly as a glimpse of harrowing logistics turns into a heartbreaking examination of poverty-stricken America.
People begin lining up Tuesday for a first-come entry ticket to the makeshift clinic, which doesn’t open until Friday. Some of those waiting have serious ailments — X-rays reveal a spot on a heavy smoker’s lung. But many of the patients most critically need dental work — not just filling cavities, but pulling decayed teeth. One man seems especially pleased that he doesn’t have do it again with a wrench.
That same amiable man lets the cameras follow as he leaves the clinic and visits a friend’s house to snort crushed pain pills he bought on the street. He’s not proud of this, he explains, but buying drugs is cheaper than a doctor’s visit.
He’s just one of many vibrant, memorable characters the filmmakers capture. And that’s one of the movie’s strengths. The ghost of policy may always be in the background, but the focus remains firmly on the stories of American citizens struggling to stay afloat in a depressed economy. And their inability to care for themselves and their families is clearly a crushing reality.
The camera work ranges from utilitarian to arresting, with opening shots that pan the final gasp of autumn colors along Bristol’s rolling hills. But some of the scenes aren’t for the squeamish. The filmmakers don’t shy from showing the gruesome details of all those tooth extractions.
It’s not all dire, though. The film is edited to balance the poignancy with brief bits of levity, not the least of which is the image of Brock, outfitted all in khaki like an aged scoutmaster, flitting around the racetrack on his bicycle.
But even with those funnier moments and the displays of in cred ible generosity from the volunteer corps, “Remote Area Medical” is an in cred ibly tragic movie. It’s also an important one, reminding viewers that America is more than its coasts and cities. There are corners of the country we all too easily forget.
