I thought they were so aggravating. I understand that scientific analysis needs to be done to see if something is viable; however, parents should be given as much information as possible (anecdotal or not) then it should be up to the parents with whether they want to try something. The fact that they were so stuck in their medical step-by-step stuff really ticked me off.
shareI agree entirely. They were the definition of yuppie.
shareA lot of the newspaper articles and reviews keep saying the doctor was portrayed as the bad guy. He wasn't. He was ready -- out of the office and completely off the record -- to tell Mr. Odone to go ahead and give Lorenzo the processed olive oil, and even told him how much. The "clinical trials vs. anecdotal evidence" problem is a they're-both-right dilemma; the real antagonists in this were that couple. I think you're absolutely right.
Let's just say that God doesn't believe in me.
I guess for the sake of story and plot, they had to make Dr. Nikolias an antagonist. They did the same thing to Dan Devine and Frank Ruettiger in the movie Rudy, two swell guys in real life turned antagonists.
UPDATE: Apparently Frank Ruettiger doesn't exist, but you get the idea.