Gosnell: The Trial of America’s Biggest Serial Killer is a heavy film. A wide chunk of the film-going audience will go out of its way to pass on it this weekend. Another sizeable chunk will go see the film and love that someone is finally speaking for them. Then, there are the people googling Gosnell Serial Killer right now.
Tackling a subject that can be used by both sides always leads to emotion. Abortion will be a hot topic for at least the next few decades in this country. Some want us to move on, while others still feel that is one of the greatest injustices staining our democracy. Then, we have cases like what Kermit Gosnell did. When I deal with people on both extremes, I advise them to argue their points in a way that strengthens them. Don’t ever give the other side fodder to be used against you.
Scum like Gosnell makes it harder for women to get the services they need at the worst points in their lives. This kind of monster reinforces the worst claptrap about abortion and makes it easy for anyone to turn against it. I try to stay a healthy distance from the material I cover, but this bothered me. This didn’t bother me as a Left-leaning Independent. The Trial of America’s Biggest Serial Killer (debatable) bothered me as a person.
The point of the film that started a lot of fights in my circle of peers was about the media coverage. I wholeheartedly agree with the filmmakers that the MSM dropped the ball so hard when it came to covering this case. But, in calling out the bizarre media blackout, the film also calls attention to the nature of the case. What Gosnell did was the exception to the rule. That monster did what anyone abusing Medicare, Medicaid and related programs does to make more money.
The difference being that this time involved birthing and then murdering live infants. If you haven’t had to deal with medical malfeasance, then some of what you see might be new to you. But, out of the way and deep urban medical centers are plagued with people selling script pads. Others deal pharmaceuticals to junkies. Depending on the specialty, the crime of choice changes. Watching doctors and their staff do illegal crap isn’t exactly newsworthy. It’s the side issue that usually grabs focus. If you Google the case, enough time passed that the national media should have been tipped off with time to spare.
Semantics is a truly messed up game that both sides plays when they try to rationalize the sobering realities of our world. I’ve already seen readers applauding the film for finally shining a light on abortion. Others have called this film out as heartless propaganda before seeing it. Due to the nature of the material, I completely understand those that might not want to view it. However, take a step back.
Gosnell is the result of a record-breaking crowdfunding effort. Last week, I covered Shine and I wanted to be balanced by covering Gosnell this week. Crowd funding is changing the entertainment landscape and providing more options in the crowded content bubble. As a regular viewer of these Right-leaning materials among the scores of other films I cover, something stood out to me. I just watched a right-leaning film with Dean Cain that treated this material as a serious true-crime case.
I had to stop and ponder what just happened. Did a right-leaning film finally do what I’ve been asking from the sub-genre for years now? The answer is Yes and I’m not sure many Left and Left-leaning individuals are going to handle that well. This returns to my point about not giving a debate opponent too much material to use against you. While the temptation remains to make this film into a hit piece on abortion, every single key point of the film calls out the unique nature of the crime.
Before the emails start, I will make this clear. I don’t care how you feel about abortion. It’s established and protected law. The matter is done and the path forward is finding ways to make it safer and stop monsters like Gosnell from abusing the process. What I do hope is that this film brings both sides together to discuss what happened not that long ago.
You don’t solve problems by ostracizing others. Problems also don’t get solved by acting like dumpster fires such as Gosnell don’t exist. If you see this film with friends or family, everyone needs to freely talk about the case. This is heavy material that produces Google Image Searches that make you want to puke. Embrace that feeling on human level and try to find what it means to you and not your politics.
