Viewers should note that the script for the trial scene is faithfully derived from the actual court documents.
By Brandon Showalter
Christian Post
You need to go see the new movie "Gosnell: The Trial of America's Biggest Serial Killer," starring actor Dean Cain in the leading role. It's in theaters nationwide this Friday [October 12th]. And while you're at it, take several friends with you. But if you've never heard about this film, I can't say I blame you. You're not alone.
Not only should you go see it if you care about the plight of unborn children and their mothers, but a purchase of this particular movie ticket is a rebuke to the disgraceful behavior of the American mainstream press a few years ago.
Maybe I'm already starting to sound too much like President Trump railing against fake news, but it sure chaps me that much of the general public still does not know about this story. What is worse, the media's appalling conduct about this continues to this day.
For those who remain unfamiliar with what happened, the trial of Kermit Gosnell — a Philadelphia abortionist who was convicted in May 2013 of first-degree murder in the deaths of a few newborns and involuntary manslaughter in the death of one of his patients — was almost completely ignored in national news outlets when the proceedings began.
Not only should you go see it if you care about the plight of unborn children and their mothers, but a purchase of this particular movie ticket is a rebuke to the disgraceful behavior of the American mainstream press a few years ago.
Maybe I'm already starting to sound too much like President Trump railing against fake news, but it sure chaps me that much of the general public still does not know about this story. What is worse, the media's appalling conduct about this continues to this day.
For those who remain unfamiliar with what happened, the trial of Kermit Gosnell — a Philadelphia abortionist who was convicted in May 2013 of first-degree murder in the deaths of a few newborns and involuntary manslaughter in the death of one of his patients — was almost completely ignored in national news outlets when the proceedings began.
Although it ought to have been a front-page, above-the-fold crime story, the national news media was only forced to cover it after weeks of intense outcry and pressure from independent citizen journalists, pro-life activists and some Republican legislators.
Gosnell's undoing all began in 2011 when police raided his clinic in a sketchy Philadelphia neighborhood as part of a narcotics bust. But what they found inside was a house of horrors straight out of "Silence of the Lambs."
The remains of human fetuses stored in refrigerators. Forty-seven dead babies found in the basement. Feral cats scampering around the facility. The severed feet of dead babies preserved in small jars. Rusty, unsterilized medical instruments and worn out equipment. An overwhelmingly foul stench. Staff administering medication and facilitating medical services for which they had no formal training. The movie shines a light on all of this very effectively.
In addition to the many thousands of abortions Gosnell performed, babies were sometimes born alive at his center and when that happened he cut their spinal cords with scissors. We will never know how many he murdered in this grisly fashion.
And then there were his adult victims, such as Karnamaya Mongar (the patient for whom he was convicted of involuntary manslaughter), a Bhutanese refugee who had just moved to the United States; and Semika Shaw, an African-American woman. Both women died after undergoing abortions at his clinic.
To add insult to injury, the fetid, unsanitary conditions at Gosnell's facility where he carried out his three-decade long killing spree were consistently ignored by state authorities and health inspectors.
I got to preview "Gosnell" a few weeks ago at a private screening in Washington, D.C.
As the trial unfolds, viewers discover that there isn't much distance between what Gosnell did at his filthy chop shop and what other abortionists routinely do in settings where the process is supposedly cleaner and the standards of care ostensibly higher.
I will leave it to the professional film critics to comment on the acting and cinematography except to say I thought they were well done.
But the moment in the movie that gripped me the most was a scene during the trial when an expert witness, a doctor who performs abortions portrayed by actress Janine Turner, testifies on the stand that she has done tens of thousands of abortion procedures over the course of her medical career, speaking matter-of-factly, as though it was nothing.
Gosnell's undoing all began in 2011 when police raided his clinic in a sketchy Philadelphia neighborhood as part of a narcotics bust. But what they found inside was a house of horrors straight out of "Silence of the Lambs."
The remains of human fetuses stored in refrigerators. Forty-seven dead babies found in the basement. Feral cats scampering around the facility. The severed feet of dead babies preserved in small jars. Rusty, unsterilized medical instruments and worn out equipment. An overwhelmingly foul stench. Staff administering medication and facilitating medical services for which they had no formal training. The movie shines a light on all of this very effectively.
In addition to the many thousands of abortions Gosnell performed, babies were sometimes born alive at his center and when that happened he cut their spinal cords with scissors. We will never know how many he murdered in this grisly fashion.
And then there were his adult victims, such as Karnamaya Mongar (the patient for whom he was convicted of involuntary manslaughter), a Bhutanese refugee who had just moved to the United States; and Semika Shaw, an African-American woman. Both women died after undergoing abortions at his clinic.
To add insult to injury, the fetid, unsanitary conditions at Gosnell's facility where he carried out his three-decade long killing spree were consistently ignored by state authorities and health inspectors.
I got to preview "Gosnell" a few weeks ago at a private screening in Washington, D.C.
As the trial unfolds, viewers discover that there isn't much distance between what Gosnell did at his filthy chop shop and what other abortionists routinely do in settings where the process is supposedly cleaner and the standards of care ostensibly higher.
I will leave it to the professional film critics to comment on the acting and cinematography except to say I thought they were well done.
But the moment in the movie that gripped me the most was a scene during the trial when an expert witness, a doctor who performs abortions portrayed by actress Janine Turner, testifies on the stand that she has done tens of thousands of abortion procedures over the course of her medical career, speaking matter-of-factly, as though it was nothing.
When Gosnell's attorney questions her about what happens when a baby is accidentally born alive during an abortion she stammers, insisting that it does not happen, and then her demeanor changes as she becomes uncomfortably aware that her sophisticated professionalism is being challenged. When pressed further, she admits that in the event that a baby is born alive during a botched procedure the protocol is that the infant is given "comfort care."
In other words, the child is left to die.
In other words, the child is left to die.
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