The Janes Explained

Director:
Producer:
  • Emma Pildes
  • Jessica Levin
  • Daniel Arcana
Distributor:HBO Max
Runtime:101 minutes
Country:United States
Language:English

The Janes is a 2022 American documentary film. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2022, and was released on HBO Max on June 8, the month after a leaked draft opinion for Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization was released, starting protests across the United States.[1] [2] The film was directed by Emma Pildes and Tia Lessin.

Summary

The Janes tells the story of members of the Jane Collective, a group of women who performed approximately 11,000 abortions in Chicago between 1968 and Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion in 1973. The film features interviews from several members of the collective.[3]

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 100% based on 66 reviews and an average rating of 8.1/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Frighteningly timely and powerfully persuasive, The Janes offers a unique opportunity to look back at a pivotal chapter in American history through the eyes of those who helped define it."[4] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 81 out of 100 based on 18 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[5]

Judy Berman of Time called the film "essential viewing for a post-Roe America".[6] Sophie Gilbert of The Atlantic commented that "the lesson from The Janes is that, in the absence of justice and political power, there's enormous potential for collective action."[7] Mark Kennedy of the Associated Press rated the film 3.5 stars out of 4, stating that "Lessin and Pildes do a masterful job of putting the Janes in historical context."[8] Doreen St. Félix of The New Yorker stated that "the palette is sober, and the filmmaking itself is recalcitrant, in service always of its tremendous story."[9]

The film was on the shortlist for the 95th Academy Awards.[10] It won an Emmy in the category of Best Documentary at the 44th News and Documentary Emmy Awards.[11]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Cooper . Carlie . June 10, 2022 . The True Story Behind HBO Max's "The Janes" Documentary . 2023-03-06 . Oprah Daily . en-us . https://web.archive.org/web/20220707172500/https://www.oprahdaily.com/entertainment/tv-movies/a40234782/the-janes-hbo-documentary/ . 2022-07-07 . live.
  2. Web site: Lodge . Guy . January 25, 2022 . 'The Janes' Review: A Stirring Documentary Account of the Trailblazing Underground Abortion Network . 2023-03-06 . Variety . en-US . https://web.archive.org/web/20220611004520/https://variety.com/2022/film/reviews/the-janes-review-1235162205/ . 2022-06-11 . live.
  3. Web site: Linden . Sheri . January 28, 2022 . 'The Janes': Film Review Sundance 2022 . 2023-03-06 . The Hollywood Reporter . en-US . https://web.archive.org/web/20221106180907/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/the-janes-review-sundance-documentary-1235077901/ . 2022-11-06 . live.
  4. the_janes. m. March 5, 2023.
  5. the-janes. movie. March 5, 2023.
  6. Web site: Berman . Judy . June 8, 2022 . 'The Janes' Is Essential Viewing for a Post-Roe America . 2023-03-06 . Time . en . https://web.archive.org/web/20221227052037/https://time.com/6185173/the-janes-review-hbo/ . 2022-12-27 . live.
  7. Web site: Gilbert . Sophie . June 30, 2022 . What a Story of 1970s Abortion Activism Can Teach Us Today . 2023-03-06 . The Atlantic . en . https://web.archive.org/web/20221106000545/https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2022/06/the-janes-hbo-max-review-abortion-roe/661446/ . 2022-11-06 . live.
  8. Web site: Kennedy . Mark . June 7, 2022 . Review: Timely 'The Janes' doc looks at secret abortions . 2023-03-06 . . en . https://web.archive.org/web/20230131083935/https://apnews.com/article/film-reviews-entertainment-documentaries-c631902e0637aced72473d1e7455b4ac . 2023-01-31 . live.
  9. Web site: St. Félix . Doreen . July 8, 2022 . "The Janes" and the Power of Pro-Abortion Imagery . 2023-03-06 . The New Yorker . en-US . https://web.archive.org/web/20230302181816/https://www.newyorker.com/culture/on-television/the-janes-and-the-power-of-pro-abortion-imagery . 2023-03-02 . live.
  10. Web site: July 8, 2022 . 95TH OSCARS® SHORTLISTS IN 10 AWARD CATEGORIES ANNOUNCED . 30 September 2023 . . en-US .
  11. Web site: ‘The Janes’ Wins Best Documentary at the 44th Annual Documentary Emmy Awards. 28 September 2023 . 30 September 2023. The Hollywood Reporter. en-US .

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