‘American Doctor’ movie review: As harrowing a depiction of tragedy as non-fiction cinema can get
"American Doctor" is a documentary by director Poh Si Teng that follows three American medical professionals delivering care in Gaza around the January–March 2025 ceasefire, capturing graphic, unflinching footage of the human toll on healthcare workers and patients. The review argues the film ranks among the best war documentaries made, praising its refusal to sanitise the violence, which it presents as ongoing evidence against attempts to deny the scale of the humanitarian catastrophe.
The film centres on Dr Mark Perlmutter, a Jewish American orthopaedic surgeon whose father witnessed the Holocaust; Dr Thaer Ahmad, a Palestinian American physician who began Gaza relief work in 2009; and trauma surgeon Dr Feroze Sidhwa, who has also volunteered in Ukraine and says the violence in Gaza is far worse. The review highlights how the documentary contrasts the doctors' harrowing frontline work with the hostility they face back in America, including misinformation and threats, and notes the "American" in the title underscores their shared national identity despite differing backgrounds.
In short
- Documentary "American Doctor" follows three US doctors treating patients in Gaza.
- Film captures graphic footage during the January–March 2025 ceasefire period.
- Doctors also face hostility and misinformation upon returning to America.
Explained simply
American Doctor is a documentary about US medical professionals who travelled to Gaza to treat patients during a period of intense fighting and a temporary ceasefire in early 2025. It follows their work in hospitals, where doctors and other staff faced severe shortages and treated people injured in the conflict.
The film focuses on orthopaedic surgeon Mark Perlmutter, Palestinian American physician Thaer Ahmad and trauma surgeon Feroze Sidhwa. Their different backgrounds shape how they describe their connections to Gaza and their medical work.
The documentary also follows the doctors’ return to the US, where they encountered criticism, misinformation and threats. Their experiences link the conditions in Gaza with wider disputes in America over the conflict and what is known about its effects on civilians.