Unpregnant approaches the issue of abortion from a female and adolescent perspective, using comedy and road travel to take another look at this controversial topic and make us reflect on it.
What is the plot?
Veronica, a 17-year-old girl, discovers that she is pregnant by her boyfriend Kevin. She doesn't want to sacrifice her future, as her sister did. She wants to go to college, but under Missouri law, she cannot have an abortion without her parents' consent. Veronica makes a plan to travel to Albuquerque by road, asking for help from her old friend Bailey, the weird and lonely girl from school, from whom she has been away for four years.
A road trip for two teenagers, to help them get together, rebuilding a friendship shattered by social stereotypes. The beautiful and popular girl, who surrounds herself with false superficial friends and the fat and weird girl that nobody wants to be with.
The story does not depart from the genre of high school comedy, but is very charming, as it addresses the issues of abortion from an adolescent and female point of view. I thought it would be a film with an anti-abortion message, but instead, in the midst of all the comedy, its message is one of true female empowerment.
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The film never sides with the opinions that govern that issue in the United States. The decision always rests with Veronica, the protagonist. No one forces her to do so. She, as a person with her own criteria, has evaluated what will be best for her.
I'm a pro-choice person, so I'm pro-abortion, as long as it's absolutely the woman's decision. I am an advocate for human freedom, we can decide about our bodies. No government, no social group, no religion should make the decisions that are ours as free individuals.
Overall, the film uses comedy to make the story fun and light, but at its core, it has a great message about the freedom to decide which path to take in our lives.
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During the road trip, the protagonists of the story will discover things about each other that they didn't know before. They will laugh, cry and fight, but in the end they will heal their old wounds and come together again as in the past. A friendship that was broken by the rules that govern the micro universe of high schools, where young people who are not and behave like a flock of sheep are separated.
The adventures of these girls, trying to reach the abortion clinic in Albuquerque will be full of inconveniences, situations a bit exaggerated, but the magnificent performances of the leading duo keep the story, very entertaining, with very funny scenes and others very moving.
The two leading actresses form an extraordinary couple on the screen.
Haley Lu Richardson plays Veronica, the young scholar, intelligent, who wants to get into a good university, but when she has sex with her boyfriend, the condom breaks. Now she's pregnant and doesn't want to change her life plans. The actress has worked on several television series, including Ravenswood. She also appeared in the movie Split and the romantic comedy Five Feet Apart.
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Barbie Ferreira plays crazy Bailey, the weird girl from high school, who helps her old best friend with the trip and supports her in what she needs. This character is the funniest in the movie. The actress is already a phenomenon among young people today, because of the character she plays in one of the best series that are currently on air: Euphoria. Ferreira is a symbol for the teenagers of this generation. I recommend that you watch the series Euphoria, for which Zendaya recently won the Emmy for best actress.
The film is directed by a woman filmmaker, Rachel Goldenberg. She has directed several films and has extensive experience in television series. Many of them are comedies. I think Unpregnant is her strongest work, because of the theme of the film, without taking conservative positions or judging the characters. This is a story that could be happening to many teenagers right now.
I found Unpregnant very pleasant, addressing a topic that is the subject of much debate, but in a pleasant way, using the resource of road travel to increase the freedom that young women have as teenagers, to make their own decisions, no matter what the statutes of society say, after all, each of us must be free and choose the path that we believe best. Can we be wrong? Of course, we are human and making mistakes is part of our lives, but it is better to make mistakes by our own decision than by the decisions of others.
The film is available on HBO Max and I hope you like it.
My Ranking: 3/5
Trailer
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