''The Red Pill'' is a 2016 American
documentary film
A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in te ...
directed by
Cassie Jaye. The film explores the
men's rights movement
The men's rights movement (MRM) is a branch of the men's movement. The MRM in particular consists of a variety of groups and individuals (men's rights activists or MRAs) who focus on general social issues and specific government services whi ...
, as Jaye spends a year filming the leaders and followers within the movement. It premiered on October 7, 2016 in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
, followed by several other one-time screenings internationally. It was released on DVD and Blu-ray in 2017 by
Gravitas Ventures
Gravitas Ventures is an independent film distribution company owned by Anthem Sports and Entertainment. The company was founded by Nolan Gallagher in Los Angeles, California in 2006 and moved its headquarters to Cleveland, Ohio in 2019, where it f ...
.
Title
The title of the film refers to a scene in the film ''
The Matrix
''The Matrix'' is a 1999 science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. It is the first installment in ''The Matrix'' film series, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, and Joe Pantolia ...
'', in which the protagonist is offered the choice of a
red pill, representing truth and self-knowledge, or a blue pill representing a return to blissful ignorance. By analogy it seeks to bring awareness to the contrast between the
men's rights movement
The men's rights movement (MRM) is a branch of the men's movement. The MRM in particular consists of a variety of groups and individuals (men's rights activists or MRAs) who focus on general social issues and specific government services whi ...
,
fathers' rights
The fathers' rights movement is a social movement whose members are primarily interested in issues related to family law, including child custody and child support, that affect fathers and their children. Many of its members are fathers who desi ...
groups, and what they perceive as
gynocentrism
Gynocentrism is a dominant or exclusive focus on women in theory or practice. Anything can be gynocentric when it is considered exclusively with a female point of view in mind.
Etymology
The term ''gynocentrism'' is derived from ancient Greek, Î³Ï ...
in wider society.
Synopsis
''The Red Pill'' shifts from Jaye's investigation of what she initially believed to be a
hate movement to more sympathetic coverage of the movement. The shift is shown in the film through Jaye's questions about her own views on gender, power, and privilege. ''The Red Pill'' also discusses issues facing men and boys, including interviews with men's rights activists and those supportive of the movement, such as Paul Elam, founder of
A Voice for Men
A Voice for Men, also known as AVfM, AVFM or AV4M, is a United States-based for-profit limited liability company and online publication founded in 2009 by Paul Elam. A proponent of the men's rights movement, or "Men's Human Rights Activism", it ...
; Harry Crouch, president of the
National Coalition for Men;
Warren Farrell
Warren Thomas Farrell (born June 26, 1943) is an American political scientist, activist, and author of seven books on men's and women's issues. He is a leading figure of the Men's Rights Movement.
Farrell initially came to prominence in the 19 ...
, author of ''
The Myth of Male Power''; and
Erin Pizzey
Erin Patria Margaret Pizzey (; born 19 February 1939) is an English ex-feminist, Men's rights activist and advocate against domestic violence, and novelist. She is known for having started the first and currently the largest domestic violence sh ...
, who started the first domestic violence shelter in the modern world. It also includes interviews with feminists critical of the movement, such as ''
Ms.
Ms. (American English) or Ms (British English; normally , but also , or when unstressed)''Oxford English Dictionary'' online, Ms, ''n.2''. Etymology: "An orthographic and phonetic blend of Mrs ''n.1'' and miss ''n.2'' Compare mizz ''n.'' The pr ...
'' magazine executive editor
Katherine Spillar
Katherine Spillar is the United States, American executive editor of ''Ms. (magazine), Ms.'' and co-founder and executive director of the Feminist Majority Foundation (FMF) and the Feminist Majority.
Early life
Katherine Spillar grew up in Texa ...
,
and
sociologist Michael Kimmel
Michael Scott Kimmel (born February 26, 1951) is an American retired sociologist specializing in gender studies. He was Distinguished Professor of Sociology at Stony Brook University in New York and is the founder and editor of the academic jour ...
. It also contains excerpts from Jaye's video diary.
Some of the issues discussed as facing men and boys are
male suicide rates,
workplace fatalities and high-risk jobs,
military conscription
Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day und ...
, lack of services for
male victims of domestic violence and
rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...
, higher rates of
violent victimization, issues concerning
divorce
Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
and
child custody
Child custody is a legal term regarding '' guardianship'' which is used to describe the legal and practical relationship between a parent or guardian and a child in that person's care. Child custody consists of ''legal custody'', which is the righ ...
,
disparity in criminal sentencing, disproportionately less funding and research on
men's health issues,
educational inequality
Educational inequality is the unequal distribution of academic resources, including but not limited to; school funding, qualified and experienced teachers, books, and technologies, to socially excluded communities. These communities tend to be his ...
, societal tolerance of
misandry
Misandry () is the hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against men.
Men's rights activists and other masculinist groups have criticized modern laws concerning divorce, domestic violence, the draft, circumcision (known as genital mutilation ...
, routine
circumcision
Circumcision is a procedure that removes the foreskin from the human penis. In the most common form of the operation, the foreskin is extended with forceps, then a circumcision device may be placed, after which the foreskin is excised. Top ...
,
men's lack of reproductive rights, lower life expectancy,
false rape allegations,
paternity fraud
Paternity fraud, also known as misattributed paternity or paternal discrepancy, occurs when a man is incorrectly identified as the biological father of a child. The underlying assumption of "paternity fraud" is that the mother deliberately miside ...
and homelessness.
Funding
According to Jaye, she initially struggled to find financiers for a film about the men's rights movement.
In an October 2015 interview with
Breitbart News
''Breitbart News Network'' (known commonly as ''Breitbart News'', ''Breitbart'', or ''Breitbart.com'') is an Radical right (United States), American far-rightMultiple sources:
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, Jaye said "we weren't finding executive producers who wanted to take a balanced approach, we found people who wanted to make a feminist film."
[ Jaye started a campaign on the crowdfunding platform Kickstarter, which she called a last resort.] The Kickstarter page, which described the project as a fair and balanced look at the men's rights movement, was strongly criticized by some feminists. The campaign raised $211,260, exceeding its goal of $97,000.
Alan Scherstuhl's review for ''The Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, th ...
'' suggested that many of those providing funding for the film may have themselves been men's rights activists (MRAs), thereby creating a conflict of interest. Jaye stated that "our five highest backers ... are neither MRA nor feminist. I would say three out of five of them didn't even know about the men's rights movement
The men's rights movement (MRM) is a branch of the men's movement. The MRM in particular consists of a variety of groups and individuals (men's rights activists or MRAs) who focus on general social issues and specific government services whi ...
, but wanted to defend free speech," and that the film's backers and producers would have no influence or control of the film.
Release
''The Red Pill'' had its world premiere on October 7, 2016 at Cinema Village in New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. It played there for a week before opening in Los Angeles on October 14, 2016. One-time screenings were also scheduled at various locations in the United States, Canada, Europe, and Australia.
In March 2017, the film was made available online.
Screening cancellations
The Australian premiere at the Palace Kino cinema in Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
cancelled their planned November 6 screening after a petition
A petition is a request to do something, most commonly addressed to a government official or public entity. Petitions to a deity are a form of prayer called supplication.
In the colloquial sense, a petition is a document addressed to some offi ...
circulated that called the film "misogynistic propaganda". The Change.org
Change.org is a worldwide nonprofit petition website, based in California, US, operated by the San Francisco-based company of the same name, which has over 400 million users and offers the public the ability to promote the petitions they care abo ...
petition gained 2,370 signatures. A counter-petition to reverse the decision gained close to 5,000 supporters in the following days, characterizing the original petition as an "effort to close down free speech in Australia" by those who wished to prevent "a screening of a movie that discusses issues that they fear might interfere with their agenda." Organizer David Williams was critical of the original petition, stating that nobody who signed the petition would have seen the film.
The Mayfair Theatre in Ottawa cancelled a private screening of the film. Lee Demarbre, co-owner and programmer of the theater, said long-time patrons and a sponsor threatened to stop doing business with the venue if the film screening went ahead. The screening was organized by the Canadian Association for Equality
The Canadian Association for Equality (CAFE) is a Canadian non-profit organization. CAFE has frequently been characterized as a men's rights group by sources, though the organization denies this.
In March 2014 the Canadian Association for Equal ...
(CAFE). Justin Trottier
Justin Trottier (born 4 December 1982) is a political activist, former political candidate and founder of Canada's largest social-political movements for secularism and men's issues. He was one of several founding members of several secular org ...
, co-founder of CAFE, said that the screening was an attempt to find common ground instead of polarizing the debate. Julie S. Lalonde, who runs Hollaback! Ottawa was one of several people who made complaints to the theater. She said the idea of freedom of expression
Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recog ...
was being abused, and that "no one has the right to have their film shown."
A screening had been planned by the Wildrose on Campus club at the University of Calgary
The University of Calgary (U of C or UCalgary) is a public research university located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The University of Calgary started in 1944 as the Calgary branch of the University of Alberta, founded in 1908, prior to being ins ...
, an organization for student supporters of the Wildrose Party
The Wildrose Party (legally Wildrose Political Association, formerly the ''Wildrose Alliance Political Association'') was a conservative provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. The party was formed by the merger in early 2008 of the Albe ...
of Alberta, but was cancelled after an email about the screening was sent out by the club with the subject line "Feminism is Cancer" and beginning "You and I both know that feminism is cancer. To create a dialogue on campus, we have decided to take action." The club later posted an apology to Twitter and cancelled the screening. In response to the controversy, Jaye said she would never equate feminism with cancer but "would be curious why do they think that."
After initially agreeing to finance a student screening, Sydney University's student union defunded the event, claiming the film promoted violence against women. In a public post on its website, the union said "We believe there is the distinct possibility that the planned screening of this documentary would be discriminatory against women, and has the capacity to intimidate and physically threaten women on campus". The screening was moved back a week and had to be financed privately by the clubs that had initially organized it.
Reception
Critical response
Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
has given the documentary a 29% rating based on 7 critic reviews, with an average rating of 4/10.
Katie Walsh of ''Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...
'' said the documentary "lacks a coherent argument" because it "is built on a fundamental misunderstanding" of key terms. Walsh said the terms could have been better defined "to comprehend the ways in which patriarchal systems control resources to exploit both women and men". She recognized that "there are many dire and urgent troubles men face that should be addressed" but concluded of the documentary, " tonly exacerbates that divide with its uncritical, lopsided presentation and inability to craft a compelling argument regarding a topic this controversial."
John DeFore of ''The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly larg ...
'' said, "Cassie Jaye's ''The Red Pill'' is clumsy and frustrating in many ways. But it demonstrates enough sincerity and openness to challenging ideas — letting representatives of this problematic movement make their case clearly and convincingly — that one wishes it were able to look at multiple sides of this debate at the same time." DeFore summarized the film as "an admirable attempt at evenhandedness whose journalistic and aesthetic failings dilute its arguments".
Alan Scherstuhl of ''The Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, th ...
'', critical of the men's rights movement, considered the film's production quality weak due to being Kickstarter-funded and highlighted that it was campaigned for by A Voice for Men
A Voice for Men, also known as AVfM, AVFM or AV4M, is a United States-based for-profit limited liability company and online publication founded in 2009 by Paul Elam. A proponent of the men's rights movement, or "Men's Human Rights Activism", it ...
and Reddit's men's rights forums. Scherstuhl considered the documentary to be "amateurish" with weak visuals. He said, "What the film and the movement fail to demonstrate is any kind of systemic cause. Instead, the author of men’s troubles here is always that vague bugaboo feminism, which we're told is designed to silence its opponents."
Cathy Young
Catherine Alicia Young (born Yekaterina Jung russian: Екатерина Юнг; born February 10, 1963) is a Russian-born American journalist. Young is primarily known for her writing about feminism and other cultural issues, as well as about R ...
of ''Heat Street
''Heat Street'' was a news, opinion and commentary website based in the United States and United Kingdom. The website was launched in April 2016 by U.S.-based British writer and former politician Louise Mensch. It was owned by News Corp under ...
'' gave the film a positive review, saying it raised important issues that often go undiscussed and made "well-deserved" criticisms of feminism. She criticized the film for failing to devote attention to "the dark side of the men's movement", and stated that the film would have benefited from onscreen discussion of the subjects in which MRAs are on "far shakier ground".
Corrine Barraclough, of the Australian tabloid newspaper ''The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was f ...
'', said "the message of ''The Red Pill'' is compassion" and the film made her "wonder why feminists tried so hard to silence this crucial conversation."
Awards
''The Red Pill'' won three awards at the 2017 Idyllwild International Festival of Cinema: "Best of Festival", "Excellence in Directing Documentary", and "Excellence in Producing a Documentary". Cassie Jaye also won the "Women in Film Award" at the Hollywood Digifest Festival for her work on the film.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Red Pill, The
2016 films
2016 documentary films
American documentary films
Kickstarter-funded documentaries
Men's rights
2010s English-language films
2010s American films