If there ever was a film deserving of the term "unflinching", this documentary is it.
I wouldn't say it's completely even-handed, as nothing can be completely unbiased, but it's pretty close. I think Lake of Fire shows these issues in as raw of a form as one of the dead fetuses seen in this film. And there are a lot of them - Two actual abortions filmed, both book-ending this brutal chronicle of one of the toughest social issues in human history.
I don't know how long Kaye's been working on this, but it seems to span over 10 years or something, which the dedication is highly admirable, and necessary for this topic. There are numerous amounts of extremely interesting interviews throughout, including the greatness of Noam Chomsky, nut-job activist John Burt and the real-life "Roe", real name Norma McCorvey, whose story I was entirely unaware of.
So imagine my shock to learn she's since joined anti-abortionist activists. Certainly one of the many accounts in understandable opposition of abortion during Lake of Fire, I really felt for McCorvey's story. But if there is any definitive stance this film takes, there is certainly no sympathy for the 'assassins' of the abortion doctors. They're shown in a deservedly dark light and are hilariously frightening.
Overall, I found the real moral to this epic story told is that there is no absolution with this debate. It's not cut and dry, nor black and white - there are a copious amounts of shades of gray. And on reflection, I wonder if that was the symbolism behind Kaye's color palette on display.
I wouldn't say it's completely even-handed, as nothing can be completely unbiased, but it's pretty close. I think Lake of Fire shows these issues in as raw of a form as one of the dead fetuses seen in this film. And there are a lot of them - Two actual abortions filmed, both book-ending this brutal chronicle of one of the toughest social issues in human history.
I don't know how long Kaye's been working on this, but it seems to span over 10 years or something, which the dedication is highly admirable, and necessary for this topic. There are numerous amounts of extremely interesting interviews throughout, including the greatness of Noam Chomsky, nut-job activist John Burt and the real-life "Roe", real name Norma McCorvey, whose story I was entirely unaware of.
So imagine my shock to learn she's since joined anti-abortionist activists. Certainly one of the many accounts in understandable opposition of abortion during Lake of Fire, I really felt for McCorvey's story. But if there is any definitive stance this film takes, there is certainly no sympathy for the 'assassins' of the abortion doctors. They're shown in a deservedly dark light and are hilariously frightening.
Overall, I found the real moral to this epic story told is that there is no absolution with this debate. It's not cut and dry, nor black and white - there are a copious amounts of shades of gray. And on reflection, I wonder if that was the symbolism behind Kaye's color palette on display.
