The Business of Being Born (2008)
Average Rating: 6.7/10
Reviews Counted: 26
Fresh: 21 | Rotten: 5
Epstein's argument in favor of home birthing is certainly biased -- but its biases are so transparent, and so impassioned, that they work in the film's favor.
Average Rating: 6.6/10
Critic Reviews: 12
Fresh: 10 | Rotten: 2
Epstein's argument in favor of home birthing is certainly biased -- but its biases are so transparent, and so impassioned, that they work in the film's favor.
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Average Rating: 3.9/5
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Movie Info
While the United States has perhaps the most advanced health care system in the world, it also has the second-highest infant mortality rate of any industrialized nation, and many have begun to question conventional wisdom regarding the way obstetricians deal with childbirth. While midwives preside over the majority of births in Europe and Japan, fewer than ten percent of American mothers employ them, despite their proven record of care and success. How do American doctors make their choices
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All Critics (27) | Top Critics (13) | Fresh (21) | Rotten (5)
Important viewing for anyone contemplating a birth plan.
Former talk show host Ricki Lake had her first baby in a hospital and came away with the need for a birth experience that was more empowering, with less medical intervention.
"The Business of Being Born" is messy and amateurish but heartfelt and compelling.
A powerful, frightening look at America's delivery room that makes a strong case for natural childbirth overseen by experienced midwives rather than by surgery-prone doctors.
Pregnant women -- and involved dads -- would be well advised to check out this provocative portrait.
[It's] so selective in its presentation of information that it makes Michael Moore look like a fat lady in a blindfold holding a pair of scales.
The Business of Being Born is Ricki Lake's passionate statement about natural birth and the health lobby's choke-hold over public perception.
Full of surprises, including shocking stats about the high rate of infant mortality in America, prevalence and high cost of Cesarean deliveries and contextual presentation of Ricki Lake's home video of the delivery of her child.
an effective glimpse into the need for personal research, and a solid argument for making informed choices.
Not a lot new about the U.S. obstetrics industry, but despite its faults, its arguments are worth bringing to a new generation of health providers and expectant parents.
This movie really made me realize how cold and impersonal the hospital births really are. If I ever had another kid (first I need to find someone to sleep with me again) I would make my significant other watch this movie.
Interviews with the mothers and footage of the birth process combine to offer intimate portraits of women preparing for and experiencing this natural phenomenon that has become increasingly mechanized.
Contending that America's mothers would be far better off if deliveries were taken out of the hands of obstetricians and hospitals, director/producer Abby Epstein and executive producer Ricki Lake will push buttons, but they won't jab them.
Epstein's film is conveniently short on interviews with the millions of mothers who have had positive experiences delivering in hospitals.
Director Abby Epstein is clearly biased in favor of home birth, but that doesn't make her case any less square.
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