Red Inside

Based on real events... It is 1967 in Cape Town, South Africa, the pinnacle of the Apartheid years. The dashing Professor Chris Barnard and his team at Groote Schuur Hospital have perfected a heart transplant procedure in a long series of experiments on dogs. In a bizarre twist of fate, Hamilton Naki, an unschooled black man formally employed as the hospital gardener, reveals himself as a pivotal part of the surgical team. Hamilton is instrumental in saving the life of Chief Cardiologist, Professor Vel Schrire's golden retriever, Goldie. Barnard, his brother Marius, Hamilton, and the research lab team did not only give Goldie a new heart but saved Schrire's beloved granddaughter, Angie a world of heartache. His success with dogs ensured Barnard's confidence to attempt his first human heart transplant, much to the concern of a man in Schrire's position. With no historical reference or clear laws in effect, a failed renegade surgeon may be charged with murder. If successful, Barnard will make medical history and usher the world into a new era of medicine, but the authorities are not on board. Hot-shot young Afrikaner Nationalist, Dr. Deon Berg watches Barnard's every move, constantly stepping on his toes and secretly reporting to the Prime Minister all that goes on behind closed doors at Groote Schuur Hospital. At the same time in Brooklyn, New York at the Maimonides Medical Centre, formidable HMO lobbyists, Mr. Ed Keiser and Mr. Pete Ellwood have great plans to profit off the future of medicine by implementing HMOs as part of the fabric of society in the US. Firm supporters of the Nixon presidential campaign, they are backing the highly skilled Dr. Adrian Kantrowitz, also ready to attempt the world's first human heart transplant. Barnard vs. Kantrowitz - The race is on! In Cape Town, fortune intervenes and Schrire gives Barnard the green light due to an unlikely sequence of events. As a last resort to save his own life, Louis Washkansky, an aging boxer agrees to be the first recipient of a transplanted heart. In the face of his crumbling marriage and Hamilton's unjust incarceration by the Langa township's passbook checkpoint police, the womanizing Barnard forges ahead with a single-minded determination to be first. The stakes are high and the only glory is in gold. Silver means nothing in this extraordinary race. In Brooklyn, Kantrowitz and his team dramatically attempt the world's first human heart transplant. In South Africa, Hamilton is still in jail. The US operation is a failure. Barnard continues to battle the oppressive Apartheid regime, the challenges of having arthritic hands, and the added pressures of his playboy lifestyle - Specifically his steaming affair with the delightful Nurse Jackie. Hamilton has an epiphany during his incarceration and discovers the missing link that may just ensure team Barnard's success. Amidst huge commotion at Groote Schuur, the news leaks that a suitable donor has been found for the transplant - A black, teenage boy. Apartheid forces are outraged at the impropriety of putting a black man's heart in a white man's body. The regime threatens Barnard and sabotages the operation at a critical moment, with Berg pulling the proverbial trigger. The Brooklyn team learns that a donor has been found and the race is back in full swing. On a Sunday afternoon in Cape Town, a tragic car accident occurs. Denise Darvall, a sweet 25-year-old woman, is declared brain-dead soon after. The Darvall family's consent provides Barnard with a suitable donor heart for the transplant. Like soldiers rallied for war, Barnard's team is summoned from their beds and evenings out on the town, to report for duty at Groote Schuur Hospital. The Barnard brothers discover surgical team member, Berg's, treacherous involvement in sabotaging their first transplant attempt. Breaking the law, Barnard insists on having Hamilton in theatre as his right-hand man after a dressing room fight leaves Berg locked in a broom closet. Hamilton steps up and shares his new scientific insight with Barnard and his brother Marius as they are scrubbing down - Insight that proves to be crucial to their success. In a nail-biting showdown between Barnard and Kantrowitz, Barnard's transplanted heart jumps back to life as Kantrowitz's flatlines. History has been made and the world of medicine changed forever. In a media frenzy, Barnard is swamped by reporters as he leaves the hospital, while a bitter Berg looks on. That sun-kissed morning, Hamilton walks home and sees Angie playing with Goldie, the dog, on Camps Bay beach. Despite Angie's joyful calls for Hamilton to come and play with them, he doesn't do so. Hamilton can only smile at her and wave as he looks at the "Whites Only" sign guarding the beach. This story leaves us with the powerful message that regardless of who we are, where we come from or the color of our skin, underneath it all, cut open with our beating human hearts exposed, we are all RED INSIDE.