This is the second post of Not Your Martyr Movies, if you want to look at what disastrous movie we watched last time check out my previous post here: http://artfullyatheist.com/2017/07/23/not-your-martyr-movies-i-am-gabriel/
Over the weekend my partner, our mutual friend, and myself watched the propaganda pro life film, The Life Zone. The Life Zone, is said to be both a horror and a thriller movie. While the film is more horrible than horror it does provide some quality good/bad movie going experiences.
Before Watching:
Based on the title and trailer of this movie, what do you think is going to happen?
Melissa- The cover art for this movie is enough to explain the movie on its own. It shows a woman’s pregnant belly with a fetus poking out and stretching the skin on the woman’s stomach. I am not completely sure if this is supposed to be a pro life tactic to stop women from getting abortions, because the idea of a fetus trying to come out of me Alien style is not a good start.
How Christian do you predict this movie will be?
M- The trailer shows a lot of imagery of Bibles, angel figurines, and rosaries so I can only assume that this movie is quite Christian. There is creepy music playing over the Christian paraphernalia, which is typically what I hear in my head when I pass eerie angel dolls anyways. They also go through a lot of pro life rhetoric, so I can only assume this movie is just creepy and horrific propaganda for that side.
After Watching:
Does this movie pass the bechdel test?
M- There are three women who have been kidnapped in a room and forced to go through with their pregnancies, along with an ex OB GYN who helped kidnap them. Begrudgingly, I believe this movie does technically pass the bechdel test. There are at least two women in the movie (who are named), they all talk to each other, and have conversations about pro life/abortions instead of about men.
Travis- Yes, there are more than two women that talk to each other and it's about something other then a man. I'm not sure I could recommend this as a strong female movie considering the 4 women in it are prisoners and are forced to accept a religious view.
Ian- I mean it might technically but um, it also passes the “most misogynist film possible test” so it evens out.
Was the movie racist/sexist/etc?
M- This movie is not only overtly sexist but also promotes kidnapping. The one man featured in this film plays as the ‘devil’ character and has the women stuck in a Saw movie situation. The three women kidnapped were about to get abortions but are now going to be forced to give birth, simultaneously. Giving birth at the exact same time is stressed throughout the movie and is very creepy. While waiting to give birth the women are forced to watch really bad debates and documentaries where mostly men discuss why being pro life is the only way. Men talking and making decisions about women’s health and bodies, it can’t get more sexist than that.
T- There weren't any characters of color, and the antagonist pretty much dominated the women.
I- It is a movie about a man who kidnaps women to force them to have children against their will. The movie was so filled to the brim with sexism it did not have time for any other bigotry.
Who was the most annoying character in the movie?
M- The most annoying character in the movie would have to be Natalie. Even as one of the women kidnapped, she believes almost immediately that she should not have an abortion and takes in all the pro life rhetoric. She is so dense that she claims there is no propaganda being shown to them at all. I don’t think she got the memo that this entire movie is pro life propaganda.
T- Natalie.
I- D) all of the above
How often was God or the Bible mentioned?
M- Surprisingly, God or the Bible being mentioned was really only in the beginning shots of this movie. They showed rosaries, Bibles, crosses, and every Christian symbol imaginable but never followed up with it. But the hard stance on pro life and anti women arguments this movie takes makes up for the lack of Bible verses.
T- I didn't really keep count, or remember it that much. There were plenty of shots of the Bible with rosary beads on them, but other than that I can't recal them mentioning God.
What was the craziest moment of the movie (that everyone thought was normal)?
M- This film has its fair share of crazy moments, but the one that stuck out to me other than kidnapping women was the idea of three women giving birth simultaneously. The ex OB GYN says to the three ladies that they will give birth simultaneously, and no one even bats an eyelash at the statement. Are these women all on the same pregnancy timeline? When they were kidnapped did the man who kidnapped them know they would give birth at the same time? These questions and more are sadly somewhat answered in the “twist” ending.
T- Around 53 minutes into the movie the women were eating, Staci and Lara were talking about all the propaganda they've seen and Natalie says, "I don't really see that much propaganda."
I- Guys, this is a movie where three women are kidnapped for months, implanted with those invisible fence dog collar things, forced to have “simultaneously births” somehow and the women are barely fazed by it.
Did anyone die or almost die?
M- At one point the only skeptic character (Staci) tries to kill her unborn baby by somehow flinging herself on the ground. Not long after that the three women give birth at the same time and then the “twist” ending is revealed. Staci ends up giving birth to twins and the OB GYN tells her she is somehow magically pregnant again. The man who kidnapped them is revealed to be the devil and tells them that they are both stuck in hell forever because Staci had an abortion and the OB GYN committed suicide. The other two women have their babies and disappear without explanation So, technically I think everyone is dead!
T- Does it count if they're already dead?
I- spoilers everyone was dead the whole time. Double spoilers the trailer for the sequel says that they where not dead the entire time.
Which characters would you fuck, marry, kill?
M- I would fuck the devil just for the hell of it, marry Staci since she is the most sensible person in this film, and kill everyone who made this movie.
T- Fuck Lara, she's the most attactive to me. Marry Staci, the most rastional. Kill Natalie, the most annoying.
I- Kill the fetus, fuck the one man who kidnapped them (so he has to kill himself) and marry uh, no idea.
What was the movie’s message?
M- I can’t tell if the message of this movie was more about forcing women to be pro life or teaching women just how stupid and terrible they are. The pro life message being shoved down the characters and audiences throats was solely told by men and gave women no voice in the matter. Which, I guess can’t be a more Christian way to get their messages across.
T- That if you choose to get an aborition you'll end up in hell forever.
I- It was not intentional but this movie is the best pro choice movie I have ever seen.
Would you recommend for other people to watch this movie?
M- The Life Zone goes by swiftly and has quite a few hilariously bad moments. If you are familiar with hell houses (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hell_house) and enjoy how scary their warped messages are in those, then you will enjoy this twisted tale.
T- IF you love terrible movies that are so bad they're good, then maybe. It's not the worst movie I've seen, but it's also not boring.
I- Yes. One of the best bad movies I have seen in a while.
Here is the trailer if you are also the devil and you spend your time kidnapping pregnant women for some reason: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Cb5bQyD2j0