I think the ultimate problem with the abortion debate is both sides like to use the exception to prove the rule, i.e. "0.1% of abortions happen as a result of rape, therefore abortions should be legal for EVERYONE," or, "0.1% of abortions happen in the third trimester, therefore NO ONE should be allowed to get abortions." Funny enough, this film appears to use one exception to tear down the other exception, i.e. It's heavily implied, though not overtly stated, that the girl was raped or abused in some way, and therefore it doesn't matter that she's in her second term.
I should probably take a step back for a second to say, regardless of any type of social messaging, this is actually a really good movie in a lot of ways. Stylistically speaking, it's hard to put your finger on it. It's such a threadbare plotline. Many of the scenes seem borrowed from different types of movies or plots. It's a bit like if you took the characters from a happy-go-lucky Disney movie, and you showed only the grainy aspects of their lives. Not everything is a joke, though we use humor to mask our pain. Not every moment has a funny clever quip. Teens sometimes throw water in a bully's face, and no one's a winner. Teens sometimes tell their parents to F off. Teens have periods. Teens Get pregnant. Teens get abortions.
Of course, none of these aspects of growing up haven't been dealt with in a serious way in film before. This is what makes this movie so good: it deals with them without the writer's stamp, so to speak. The film encompasses a relatively short and drawn out span of time (just a couple days). A typical made for tv movie might deal with this aspect of the plot in 15 minutes of screen time, for example, and then come full circle. In a sense, this film feels like a sort of purgatory with everything left up in the air, by the end of it.
We really don't know much about this girl's life other than what has been vaguely suggested, and we don't know where she's going, or what her plans for the future are. All we know is she's the type of person who feels her life is more important than the life of her child... and of course, this is what you get from being raised in a world with an over-abundance of choice centered around individualism.
The "Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always" scene is super intense in a way that grabs you midway through. At the same time it's also super simple and basic, almost tawdry to the point where it doesn't seem worth dignifying as a film scene, but actually that's what makes it so strong. The fact that you can picture this type of interview happening countless times in more or less the same way, is what gives you that sense of purgatory. But to focus in on those words particularly, without giving a direct answer, it almost feels like a progression: first never, then rarely, then sometimes, then always. This is a life based around pleasure and impulse, this is how it progresses, and this is what it leads to.
A second wrinkle I'll add to the to the whole abortion debate, is women who get abortions as a result of being raped, are ultimately just perpetuating the cycle of abuse, one that suffocated their sense of empathy in the first place, enough to cause them to do so. Trauma begets more trauma. That's not a solution to a problem; it's a symptom of it. That really should be obvious to more people. Abortions ultimately are a form of self harm, to be honest, ESPECIALLY if you don't think an unborn child is a life, and the scene where she beats herself in the guts black and blue puts great emphasis on that. How do you kill your own flesh and blood? I just don't get it...
If you had an abortion out of desperation, I can understand, but it's not something you should be proud of. If you had an abortion out of convenience, it's because you are garbage. That's obvious. Why? Because you treat sex and life as disposable, and you are the object of that sex: probably the type of person who throws leftover food in the garbage because you have no respect for life/sustenance in the macro sense. The good news is it's never too late to pick yourself up out of the dumpster, and find value in that which you were gifted. The cycle of abuse has to stop somewhere. As long as you're living you will get a second chance, even if you don't know it when you see it; even if it does feel like purgatory. A life of singular motive will only ever lead back to the same place: Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always...
That being said, while this film appears to be very much a pro abortion film, in this case a second term abortion, seeming to suggest that rape justifies ANY action on the mother's part, they're not being heavy handed about it, and the real boon you have when you're trying to present a pro abortion case, I find, is you're certainly not going to be depicting a HAPPY scenario. The second term abortion here is being depicted as a horrific experience, and when the female protagonist has been sexually active since 14, having had 6 partners in the space of 3 years, anal, oral, and vaginal as per the query of her case worker, it really is painting a picture of a problem that appears to be systemic only to a very certain lifestyle.
Either way, they're simply showing you a moment in time of a character's life, and without the writer's stamp, it's hard to internalize it negatively, whatever your personal views may be. The film will pass and float over you. It's a nightmare WITH an end, but no clear new beginning. A must see for fans of minimalism in films. It will definitely give you aomething to think about.
The only minor criticism I have of this film, is I really don't see how this is supposed to be 2002. The three main characters always on their phones, constantly saying "I'll text you," feels very anachronistic. I mean, this is just two years out of the Napster era. Back in 2002 most schools still had a no cell phone policy. In 2001, I remember my friend showing me his phone with the new built in camera, and I remember being blown away by this amazing new fandangled "spycam" technology.
"Texting" wasn't common. You could actually go to a party with friends and NO ONE would be checking their phones. PC's were still king, and everyone was using MSN messenger. I'll "message" you, is what you'd say, and sure, in theory the technology was there, so while it's not IMPOSSIBLE for these three characters to be super into their phones, in 2002, they'd be outliers and weirdos. Again, otherwise it's a good film, this is just one gnawing wrinkle I wish I didn't have to deal with while watching it.
I should probably take a step back for a second to say, regardless of any type of social messaging, this is actually a really good movie in a lot of ways. Stylistically speaking, it's hard to put your finger on it. It's such a threadbare plotline. Many of the scenes seem borrowed from different types of movies or plots. It's a bit like if you took the characters from a happy-go-lucky Disney movie, and you showed only the grainy aspects of their lives. Not everything is a joke, though we use humor to mask our pain. Not every moment has a funny clever quip. Teens sometimes throw water in a bully's face, and no one's a winner. Teens sometimes tell their parents to F off. Teens have periods. Teens Get pregnant. Teens get abortions.
Of course, none of these aspects of growing up haven't been dealt with in a serious way in film before. This is what makes this movie so good: it deals with them without the writer's stamp, so to speak. The film encompasses a relatively short and drawn out span of time (just a couple days). A typical made for tv movie might deal with this aspect of the plot in 15 minutes of screen time, for example, and then come full circle. In a sense, this film feels like a sort of purgatory with everything left up in the air, by the end of it.
We really don't know much about this girl's life other than what has been vaguely suggested, and we don't know where she's going, or what her plans for the future are. All we know is she's the type of person who feels her life is more important than the life of her child... and of course, this is what you get from being raised in a world with an over-abundance of choice centered around individualism.
The "Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always" scene is super intense in a way that grabs you midway through. At the same time it's also super simple and basic, almost tawdry to the point where it doesn't seem worth dignifying as a film scene, but actually that's what makes it so strong. The fact that you can picture this type of interview happening countless times in more or less the same way, is what gives you that sense of purgatory. But to focus in on those words particularly, without giving a direct answer, it almost feels like a progression: first never, then rarely, then sometimes, then always. This is a life based around pleasure and impulse, this is how it progresses, and this is what it leads to.
A second wrinkle I'll add to the to the whole abortion debate, is women who get abortions as a result of being raped, are ultimately just perpetuating the cycle of abuse, one that suffocated their sense of empathy in the first place, enough to cause them to do so. Trauma begets more trauma. That's not a solution to a problem; it's a symptom of it. That really should be obvious to more people. Abortions ultimately are a form of self harm, to be honest, ESPECIALLY if you don't think an unborn child is a life, and the scene where she beats herself in the guts black and blue puts great emphasis on that. How do you kill your own flesh and blood? I just don't get it...
If you had an abortion out of desperation, I can understand, but it's not something you should be proud of. If you had an abortion out of convenience, it's because you are garbage. That's obvious. Why? Because you treat sex and life as disposable, and you are the object of that sex: probably the type of person who throws leftover food in the garbage because you have no respect for life/sustenance in the macro sense. The good news is it's never too late to pick yourself up out of the dumpster, and find value in that which you were gifted. The cycle of abuse has to stop somewhere. As long as you're living you will get a second chance, even if you don't know it when you see it; even if it does feel like purgatory. A life of singular motive will only ever lead back to the same place: Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always...
That being said, while this film appears to be very much a pro abortion film, in this case a second term abortion, seeming to suggest that rape justifies ANY action on the mother's part, they're not being heavy handed about it, and the real boon you have when you're trying to present a pro abortion case, I find, is you're certainly not going to be depicting a HAPPY scenario. The second term abortion here is being depicted as a horrific experience, and when the female protagonist has been sexually active since 14, having had 6 partners in the space of 3 years, anal, oral, and vaginal as per the query of her case worker, it really is painting a picture of a problem that appears to be systemic only to a very certain lifestyle.
Either way, they're simply showing you a moment in time of a character's life, and without the writer's stamp, it's hard to internalize it negatively, whatever your personal views may be. The film will pass and float over you. It's a nightmare WITH an end, but no clear new beginning. A must see for fans of minimalism in films. It will definitely give you aomething to think about.
The only minor criticism I have of this film, is I really don't see how this is supposed to be 2002. The three main characters always on their phones, constantly saying "I'll text you," feels very anachronistic. I mean, this is just two years out of the Napster era. Back in 2002 most schools still had a no cell phone policy. In 2001, I remember my friend showing me his phone with the new built in camera, and I remember being blown away by this amazing new fandangled "spycam" technology.
"Texting" wasn't common. You could actually go to a party with friends and NO ONE would be checking their phones. PC's were still king, and everyone was using MSN messenger. I'll "message" you, is what you'd say, and sure, in theory the technology was there, so while it's not IMPOSSIBLE for these three characters to be super into their phones, in 2002, they'd be outliers and weirdos. Again, otherwise it's a good film, this is just one gnawing wrinkle I wish I didn't have to deal with while watching it.