TV Reviews : ‘Donor’ Strains Probability to the Extreme

For most folks, hospitals, whether they’re in fiction or in fact, are uncomfortable, unpleasant, generally scary places. Mid City General, the scene of “Donor,” a new CBS movie airing Sunday night at 9 on Channels 2 and 8, mixes the worst of Robin Cook, Paddy Chayefsky and Stephen King. Rotten place to visit, wouldn’t want to die there.

“Donor” is one of those tricky conspiratorial thrillers, which, like most of this genre, strains probability to its extreme, and especially in a big hospital, where it’s hard to keep secrets. Like if you were going to take gland samples from this kid with progeria, the premature-senility disorder, then feed them to young men to age them and kill them off and in the process come up with an anti-aging pill that would be worth millions and millions and millions, wouldn’t somebody be suspicious?

Well, as far as we know, the only person who thinks something’s amiss is young Dr. Kris Lipton (played by Melissa Gilbert-Brinkman). Even as people are getting slashed up with a razor, Kris’ anxieties are pooh-poohed by handsome Dr. Kesselman (Jack Scalia), surly Dr. Farrell (Wendy Hughes) and patriarchal Dr. Martingale (Pernell Roberts).

(One, of course, is a secret agent for the Food & Drug Administration--and just in time.)

What starts out with a slick premise on a dark and stormy night in eerie Ward 7 West, eventually ends up with comic-book tussling in Operating Room 8.

Not bad business but best to take two aspirin and get plenty of rest.