Regardless of where you stand on the abortion debate, Lake of Fire is sure to be one of the most disturbing films you'll ever see.
Director Tony Kaye (American History X) weaves in and out of the debate, employing just the right amount of interviewees including bioethicists, scholars, famous faces (Noam Chomsky, Alan Dershowitz), and supporters on both sides. Pro-life extremists John Burt and Rev Paul Hill are both given more than enough screen time for the prerequisite 'lunatic' angle. Pro-choice supporters fair slightly better though their fringe members are just as eccentric though not nearly as reprehensible.
Not content with covering the abortion debate via news footage and 'talking heads', Kaye brazenly incorporates scenes of actual abortions, before, during, and after the procedure. To call it shocking would be an understatement. It's certainly the most visually devastating film footage I've ever seen. The audience I viewed the film with were stopped cold in their tracks, this critic included. Could Lake of Fire have worked without the grisly scenes? Probably not. And unfortunately it's certain to turn off many viewers.
Unlike Michael Moore's Sicko (which sits towards the top of my best of 2007 list), Kaye doesn't tip his hat one way or the other on the issue of abortion. That alone is an incredible feat. I'm hard-pressed not to interject my own personal beliefs in this measly review. What's most striking about Lake of Fire is how it develops the debate beyond the simple context of a women's right to choose and protecting the rights of the unborn baby. We learn how class struggle, religion, political affiliation, education, sexuality, science, philosophy, racism, big government, US history, and gender equality all factor in. The hypocrisy presented of killing abortion doctors to save fetuses, while tens of millions of children die worldwide from malnutrition and easily treated diseases is almost unbearable.
Kaye wisely chose to shoot Lake of Fire in muddy black and white, not the high contrast Hollywoodized B&W as of late. So instead of black and white representations of the abortion debate, we're provided with the very ambiguous gray. I had the chance to meet Tony Kaye after the screening, he came across as a very humble and unassuming man. Lake of Fire took 15 years of his life to complete and every ounce of dedication is up on the screen.
After seeing Lake of Fire, you'll leave with two realizations, no matter what your personal beliefs are. One, abortions aren't going away, even if they were banned outright. And more importantly, there are things that can be changed within the government that would dramatically decrease the number of abortions performed. Young, uneducated, poor, often minority women can improve their lives, consequently avoiding unwanted pregnancies. I would make Lake of Fire required viewing for all high school students and anyone looking for an earth-shattering film experience. It's one of the most important documentaries ever made.
