Call Jane (2022)

Call Jane review by Mark McPherson - Cinema Paradiso

The struggle for abortion rights has more hope present in Call Jane rather than lamenting on how tough the fight was or how backward we’ve become. Make no mistake: We have gone backward. The United States rolling back abortion rights makes a film like this all the more essential for how important it is to keep up the fight. As messy as this film sometimes becomes, it feels appropriate for the moment with its firmer focus on the theme than anything else.

The film centers around a housewife’s awakening to the restrictive reproductive rights of 1960s America. Joy (Elizabeth Banks) discovers that her second pregnancy has gone awry, and she needs an abortion. Unfortunately, her local hospital of all-male doctors outright refuses to operate. Feeling helpless and with nowhere left to turn, she happens upon a secret group calling themselves the Janes. Operating under the medical community's radar, the Janes provide abortions at a cost, led by their steadfast leader Virgina (Sigourney Weaver).

While Joy is lucky enough to have the procedure safely, she understands she’s not a particular case. There are more women in need of abortions, many of which can’t afford them. The focus becomes less on the dynamic between Joy and her mildly-sexist husband, Will (Chris Messina), which is wrapped up rather conveniently by the third act, and instead becomes more about continuing the struggle. Joy takes on the most crucial role by learning how to perform abortions from the unlicensed doctor they have working in their ranks. After all, if a man with no legit medical degree could perform so many abortions effectively, who's to say he couldn’t teach another woman to do so?

There’s an intelligent call for this film to diverge from becoming a bog-standard recount of history and explore more of the little details worth noting. There’s a great conversation about race within the Jane’s when one of the few black members discusses how complicated, unwanted, or botched pregnancies affect her community. The topic of black genocide comes up, and it’s one that Virginia can not shy away from, no matter how much of a case she makes for being an ally in the civil rights movement. Fighting racism doesn’t end with being able to use the same facilities as white people. It’s an aspect of continuing racism that deserves to be addressed.

Present throughout the film is an air of acceptance and hope for tomorrow. Joy slowly learns more about the movement, and her husband soon comes around. Many women who felt they needed to fall downstairs for an abortion or were kept ignorant of their reproductive parts are allowed to learn the truth. By the end of the picture, the Janes disbanded for being redundant when abortion rights became more secure for doctors. While that ending might seem bittersweet, considering how the Janes feel needed now more than ever, it’s a telling sign of how corrupted systems like this can be toppled. Abortion rights were affirmed during a time when women had little access to knowledge or resources. With the increasing ease of access to help on the subject now, it’s only a matter of time before the brutal nature of outlawing abortions will crumble again as long as women are willing to fight for it.

Call Jane plays more like a pro-choice pastiche but a remarkable one. The performances are top-notch, the inspiration bubbling, and the tone combines sadness and triumph. It’s the right move for exactly the right moment.