BRILLIANT MINDS: Episode 1.1 – Movie Guide | Movie Reviews for Families | BRILLIANT MINDS: Episode 1.1 – Movie Guide

BRILLIANT MINDS is a medical drama streaming on NBC that follows brilliant doctor Oliver Wolf’s unorthodox methods of treating patients with mental disorders. Although his methods are sometimes legally questionable, they help his patients recover better than other doctors. After being fired from his position after too much workplace shenanigans, Dr. Wolf joins the staff of the overworked and understaffed Bronx General Hospital. In his first case, he helps a patient restore her ability to feel emotions so she can adequately care for her children.

The show places a strong emphasis on Biblical morality, especially the sanctity of human life and our inherent dignity. In the first episode, a mother unable to care for her children after brain surgery inspires Dr. Wolf, who works tirelessly to help her overcome her new mental illness. Although the first episode contains three mild profanities and five instances of the Lord’s name being spoken in vain, there is little other immorality present in the episode. MOVIEGUIDE® advises caution for older children.

(BBB, A, L, N, M):

Dominant worldview and other content/elements of the worldview:

Very strong biblical worldview, as Dr. Wolf, the main character, works extremely hard to bring dignity to the lives of his patients, especially because they are psychiatric patients who are often overlooked by others. Dr. Wolf puts a lot of emphasis on family, working hard to reunite a mother with her children after they were taken from her by Child Protective Services after surgery left her unable to properly care for them. Wolf also saves the patient’s life by protecting her from suicide;

Foul language:

Mild profanity with 2 h*** words, 1 di** word and 5 instances of taking the Lord’s name in vain;

Violence:

No violence;

Sex:

No sex;

Nudity:

A brief shot of a woman in a bra changing, and a brief shot of male nudity after Dr. Wolf comes out of the shower;

Alcohol consumption:

Enjoying a nice drink at a wedding;

Smoking and/or drug use and abuse:

No drug use is proven, but the doctor jokes about drug use in college; And,

Miscellaneous Immorality:

Dr. Wolf kidnaps an Alzheimer’s patient so he can see his granddaughter on her wedding day; he is fired for this.

BRILLIANT MINDS is a medical drama streaming on NBC. The series follows the jokes of the brilliant psychologist Dr. Oliver Wolf, who really cares about his patients and does everything he can to help them overcome their mental problems. His own mental disorder and the mental disorder he saw his father suffer from as a child motivate his passion for his patients. Although his methods are unorthodox and sometimes of questionable legality, he is ultimately able to understand and help his patients better than his colleagues.

In the first episode of season 1, Dr. Wolf becomes an Alzheimer’s patient so he can attend his granddaughter’s wedding. Although the patient’s appearance makes the night and he remembers his granddaughter’s name after singing a song at the wedding, the family ultimately threatens to sue the hospital for negligence, causing Dr. Wolf loses his job.

When Dr. Wolf’s friend from medical school, Dr. Kinney, hearing he was unemployed, invited him to work at her hospital, Bronx General. Dr. Wolf is initially hesitant, but eventually accepts the position and is paired with a patient who cannot feel emotions around things or people she has deep connections with. This condition developed after she underwent brain surgery, which left her unable to properly care for her children.

Although other doctors push her aside, Dr. Wolf commits himself to her and promises to help her love her boys again. Unfortunately, a Child Protective Services agent removes the children from her home due to her condition, slowing Dr. Wolf is hampered.

While her boys no longer live at her home, Dr. Wolf for frequent visits to help him better understand the condition. However, the pain of seeing her children but not feeling any emotion pushes the patient to the brink of suicide. At the last moment, Dr. saves the day. Wolf kills her and discovers a treatment to help her reconnect with the children. His method works and he convinces the child protective services agent to allow the children to return home, reuniting his patient with her children.

Although Dr. Wolf works extremely hard to care for his patients, his personal life suffers, with a strained relationship with his mother that he is unwilling to work on, and his intellectual disability hinders his ability to make friends. Although the actions of Dr. Wolf is admirable to his patients and affirms the Biblical teachings about the inherent dignity of humanity, Dr. So Wolf himself is not inspiring.

Episode 1 of BRILLIANT MINDS is an entertaining start to the new medical drama. The show stands out from many medical dramas and focuses on a brilliant doctor doing incredible work, rather than putting the medical aspect aside to focus on unnecessary drama and immoral actions. If the show continues on the path of the first episode, it could be a family-friendly medical drama with staying power. However, due to mild profanity and the focus of the show, MOVIEGUIDE® advises caution for older children.