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Call Jane

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Call Jane
Theatrical release poster
Directed byPhyllis Nagy
Screenplay by
  • Hayley Schore
  • Roshan Sethi
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyGreta Zozula
Edited byPeter McNulty
Music byIsabella Summers
Production
companies
  • Ingenious Media
  • RB Entertainment
  • Redline Entertainment
  • Our Turn Productions
  • FirstGen Content
  • LB Entertainment
Distributed byRoadside Attractions
Release dates
  • January 21, 2022 (2022-01-21) (Sundance)
  • October 28, 2022 (2022-10-28) (United States)
Running time
121 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$694,787[1]

Call Jane is a 2022 American drama film starring Elizabeth Banks as a suburban housewife in the 1960s who deals with a life-threatening pregnancy and subsequently joins the Jane Collective, an underground network of abortion activists.[2] The film also stars Sigourney Weaver, Chris Messina, Kate Mara, Wunmi Mosaku, Cory Michael Smith, Grace Edwards, and John Magaro. It is directed by Phyllis Nagy. The screenplay was written by Hayley Schore and Roshan Sethi.

It premiered at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival on January 21, 2022.[3] It was released in the United States on October 28, 2022, by Roadside Attractions.

Plot

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In 1968 Chicago, Joy Griffin, a traditional housewife, is pregnant with a second child long after having a daughter, Charlotte, who is now a teenager and just experienced menstruation. Shortly after witnessing the 1968 Democratic National Convention protests, Joy begins experiencing bouts of fatigue, culminating in her passing out at her home. In the hospital, she and her husband Will learn that her pregnancy is causing her to have congestive heart failure, which will kill her unless she has her child before then, or has an abortion.

Joy and Will decide to petition the hospital’s all-male board for an abortion, only for them to unanimously refuse her request. In the wake of this, Joy becomes increasingly desperate over time. She eventually attempts a back alley abortion, but flakes out upon seeing the horrible conditions. Running outside, Joy finds an ad for the Jane Collective, a Chicago underground women's network that provides safer abortions. Joy schedules an appointment with them, and is escorted by a former patient named Gwen to a secret clinic outside of town. There, Joy successfully receives an abortion from a talented but misogynistic male gynecologist, Dean. While recuperating, she meets the collective's founder, Virginia. Upon returning home, Joy lies to Will and Charlotte about the circumstances and claims she had a miscarriage.

A few days later, Virginia calls Jane at her home and extorts her to escort a woman to the clinic after Gwen is struck with food poisoning, which she reluctantly does. Joy is mortified to discover the girl is a flippant teenager named Sandra, and the father is having an extramarital affair with her and also paying for the procedure. Virginia rebukes this, saying that no woman deserves to be judged, but rather helped. Joy eventually gets roped into becoming part of the collective, under the guise of going to art class, and befriends Virginia.

Joy begins assisting Dean with the procedure, as well as patients going through emotional stress. This results in her discovering that Dean is not actually a licensed medical professional, and has no degree. Meanwhile, friction grows over the high $600 charge that Dean requests for each abortion, particularly Gwen, as her fellow African Americans are disproportionately disadvantaged to pay the fee. While Virginia struggles to negotiate a new deal, Joy bribes Dean, agreeing to keep her mouth shut if Dean teaches her how to perform abortions, which he reluctantly does. Joy eventually lets slip Dean's situation while trying to convince Virginia of her capabilities; Virginia still refuses, as Dean is still more qualified, the money helps pay for the clinic, and a botched abortion is treated as a homicide.

Virginia's new deal with Dean allows for two free procedures, and she gives one of them for Joy to do, only for Joy to discover that it is Sandra. The procedure is a success, but Charlotte follows her to the clinic and discovers the truth. Despite this, Virginia agrees to trust Joy, and has her replace Dean. Things go smoothly for a while, but eventually, one of the procedures is botched, causing the patient to bleed after the fact. A series of events tips Joy off to a police detective, who arrives at the house. Joy is forced to admit the practice to him and Will when he declares he will send a fake patient there, but tricks him into thinking the fee is active. Will is initially furious, but reconciles with her afterwards.

Joy attempts to quit to keep a low profile, causing Virginia to come to her house and plead for her return. Discovering that hundreds of women are now on the waiting list, Charlotte encourages Joy to return. She eventually compromises by agreeing to stay for a while until she can show the rest of the women the procedure, and the collective agrees. Tens of thousands of women subsequently receive the procedure, and Will successfully defends the collective in court once they are exposed, ultimately leading to the legalization of abortion nationwide. The collective is subsequently disbanded, and a party is held in celebration.

Cast

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Production

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The script originally appeared on the 2017 Black List, where it received seven votes. Coincidentally, another script based on the same story, titled This is Jane by Daniel Loflin, was also featured on the same Black List, with nine votes.

It was announced in October 2020 that Elizabeth Banks, Sigourney Weaver, Kate Mara and Rupert Friend had been cast to star in the film. Elisabeth Moss and Susan Sarandon had been initially cast as Joy and Virginia respectively,[5] but both had to exit due to scheduling conflicts.[6] In May 2021, Chris Messina, Cory Michael Smith, Aida Turturro, Wunmi Mosaku, Grace Edwards, and Bianca D'Ambrosio joined the cast of the film, with Friend no longer attached.[7][8][9][10]

The film was shot in West Hartford, Connecticut from May and June 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic.[11][12]

Release

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It premiered at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival on January 21, 2022.[13] On February 4, 2022, Roadside Attractions acquired the film's distribution rights, with plans to release it theatrically in the fall.[14] It was released on October 28, 2022.[15]

The film was released for VOD on December 6, 2022, followed by a Blu-ray and DVD release on December 13, 2022.[16]

The film partnered with Planned Parenthood and the Abortion Care Network to screen at dozens of American clinics. In a statement by Nagy, the director hoped that screenings would serve as an opportunity to increase awareness around direct abortion care services in the months following the overturning of Roe v. Wade.[17]

Reception

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On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 82% of 130 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.7/10. The website's consensus reads: "Although its focus is somewhat narrow, Call Jane is an entertaining and dramatically effective dramatization of a pivotal chapter in American history."[18] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 62 out of 100, based on 35 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[19]

On its opening weekend, Call Jane grossed $243,922.[20]

References

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  1. ^ "Call Jane (2022)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved November 25, 2022.
  2. ^ Dargis, Manohla (October 22, 2022). "'Call Jane' Review: Abortion History That's Being Repeated Now". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 23, 2023. Retrieved July 23, 2023.
  3. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony; Patten, Dominic (December 9, 2021). "Sundance 2022: Hybrid Festival Sees Princess Diana, Michael Kenneth Williams, Dakota Johnson, Bill Cosby, NYC Rock'n'Roll & Regina Hall Fill Lineup". Deadline. Archived from the original on December 9, 2021. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  4. ^ a b Horst, Carole (October 30, 2021). "'Carol' Writer Phyllis Nagy Talks About Her New Drama 'Call Jane'". Variety. Archived from the original on October 30, 2021. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
  5. ^ Wiseman, Andreas (October 30, 2020). "'Call Jane': Elizabeth Banks, Sigourney Weaver, Kate Mara & Rupert Friend Set For Women's Rights Drama From "Carol" Scribe & "Dallas Buyers Club" Producer — AFM". Deadline. Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  6. ^ "'Call Jane': Elizabeth Banks, Sigourney Weaver, Kate Mara & Rupert Friend Set For Women's Rights Drama From "Carol" Scribe & "Dallas Buyers Club" Producer — AFM". Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
  7. ^ "'Lovecraft Country's Wunmi Mosaku Joins Elizabeth Banks & Sigourney Weaver In "Call Jane" Drama". Archived from the original on April 6, 2021. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  8. ^ "Abby Miller Toplines 'Jess Plus None'; Chiara d'Ambrosio Joins 'Bandit'; Bianca d'Ambrosio Cast in 'Call Jane'; Lawrence Kao, Kai Cech Star in 'The Longest Sleep'- Film Casting Briefs". May 28, 2021. Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
  9. ^ Grober, Matt (May 3, 2021). "Chris Messina, Cory Michael Smith, Aida Turturro And Grace Edwards Join Cast Of Women's Rights Drama, 'Call Jane'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on May 3, 2021. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
  10. ^ N'Duka, Amanda (May 28, 2021). "Abby Miller Toplines 'Jess Plus None'; Chiara B'Ambrosio Joins 'Bandit'; Bianca D'Ambrosio Cast In 'Call Jane'; Lawrence Kao, Kai Cech Star In 'The Longest Sleep'- Film Casting Briefs". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on May 28, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  11. ^ "Call Jane". ProductionList.com. Film & Television Industry Alliance. February 8, 2021. Archived from the original on June 21, 2021. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  12. ^ Newton, Ronni (May 13, 2021). "West Hartford Sites Serves as Stage for Hollywood Movie". We-Ha.com. Retrieved June 19, 2023.[permanent dead link]
  13. ^ Thompson, Anne (January 21, 2022). "Could "Call Jane" Be the Abortion Drama Made for the Mainstream Arthouse Audience?". IndieWire. Archived from the original on April 18, 2022.
  14. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 4, 2022). "Call Jane: Sundance Women's Rights Drama Starring Elizabeth Banks, Sigourney Weaver Acquired By Roadside Attractions". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on October 26, 2022. Retrieved February 5, 2022.
  15. ^ "Call Jane". AMC Theatres. Archived from the original on October 26, 2022. Retrieved April 18, 2022.
  16. ^ "Call Jane DVD Release Date". www.dvdsreleasedates.com. Archived from the original on February 26, 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2023.>
  17. ^ Abbey White (October 28, 2022). "'Call Jane' Partners With Planned Parenthood, Abortion Care Network to Screen Film With Clinics Across the U.S. (Exclusive)". Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on October 28, 2022. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  18. ^
  19. ^ "Call Jane". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  20. ^ "Call Jane". Archived from the original on October 31, 2022. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
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