Due West: The Power of Choice, the Cost of Desperation
- Jasmine W.
- 2 days ago
- 5 min read
TRIGGER WARNING: CONTENT INCLUDES MENTION OF SEXUAL ASSAULT AND ABORTION. READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION.
If you're anything like me, you love a good story. And I mean a good one. Granted, I'm not a film buff by any means, but I absolutely love a well-told story. What makes a story captivating for me is how well I can connect or resonate with it. But I must say, I was not prepared for this movie. My partner and I took the liberty of watching a screening of Due West, which premiered during the Dallas International Film Festival last weekend. I think I can speak for my partner when I saw we were definitely not ready for the goodness that is this indie film.
A Texas film at heart, DUE WEST is written and directed by Evan Miller and tells a timely, emotional story set in West Texas. These photos represent the hard work the cast and crew put into the making of this film. Photo credits: Jonathan Nicholas, Elena Wasserman, and Challen Cates
You can sense something is amiss from the moment the woman steps into the first scene. The uneasiness and awkwardness of the way she averts her eyes while holding a conversation with people she knows is palpable. Perhaps she has social anxiety, which would be understandable. But no, our leading lady is a broken woman. She looks like a mere shell of her former self, with little life remaining. The pain, confusion, determination, and bitterness are invisible tattoos written on her face and in her demeanor towards certain people. Now, being different due to a lifetime in a small West Texas town is one thing. But in her case, she carries a weight and a burden that no one should ever have to endure.
"When this script came to me, I knew it would be the most important thing I would do -- not only as an actor, but also a producer. It has single-handedly changed me as a human. I’m beyond grateful to the writers and my director for their undying belief in me to tell this story of struggle, will, and humanity.” - Adrienne Palicki
Through her POV, we are introduced to people that the woman relies on to help her navigate her day-to-day life, but you also get the sense that while she knows them, she can't really trust them. She gets help from her brother, only to find herself catching his wife's disdain. She has a friend whom she's asked to cover her shift twice without explanation. The woman gets very nervous around the seemingly nice, yet awkward pastor of the local church. And then you have the townsfolk who know the woman and have watched her grow up in their small town in West Texas.
As the story goes on, I'm watching this woman having to navigate some very tough, but very real situations. We find her meeting up with a man who can assist her with what's called a medically-induced abortion, only to realize she's been conned out of money and her dignity. She runs into the source of her pain and anguish, who acts like everything is good and nothing bad happened. She finds herself getting a ride with a woman who is also on her own journey of self-discovery. The young lady picked her up from the side of the road (thank you, Evan lol) and offered to give the woman a ride towards Alpine, Texas (yes, this is a real place). The driver shares a very personal story with her that causes the woman to really think about her own situation. She meets an older woman who runs a motel and ends up being the angel-in-disguise we all dream of. All the while, I'm watching them and thinking of what I went through. Emotion levels are high and tense. And when all is said and done, her saving grace is the one person she never thought would stand with her especially as it pertains to their moral codex. That was something the woman had from the very beginning.
Abortion has become a hot topic, and personally, I think director Evan Miller was a madman to even want to do a movie about it! But this was the culmination of time and discussions between him, the executive producers, and writers. I couldn't wrap my head around how a story like this could be told in the way it was, but alas here we are. And you know it's real when Evan's wife was with him the whole way. Palicki's character is the epitome of if "by any means necessary" was a person. Her struggle was much harder than mine since abortions are illegal in Texas and multiple states in the US. There is no room for consideration of circumstances such as getting pregnant by rape/forced coercion or emergency medical reasons. Planned Parenthood clinics weren't being forced to shut down back when I was in need of their services. I didn't have my freedoms threatened for doing what was right for myself. I wasn't facing prison time for taking care me. Medical practitioners weren't facing harm to themselves and their livelihoods when providing much needed services to women.
This movie challenges the conversation of autonomy and choice. You don't see this much push for men to have their choices challenged when it comes to their sexual health. Due West grants us the opportunity to see how and in what ways that historical decision to overturn Roe v. Wade would affect womankind across the United States. We've read the news articles and heard the stories of women who walked down this road or lost their lives. And this is how Due West excels within this narrative. The messaging behind the film is subtle and almost allusive if you're not paying attention. It can be lost on some, but discussions will be had. The music is everything you'd want in a narrative piece such as this.
“We felt like we had a chance as filmmakers and longform storytellers to go beyond the outrage and explore the topic in an adult way. To leave the preaching to the preachers and the politics to the politicians and focus on what remained–our shared humanity. We thought of it as art in the old tradition–-don’t tell the audience what to think.” Evan Miller
I would highly recommend Due West to any and every person who's able to watch it. It is very much worth it. A big thank you to the entire cast and crew for making this epic story. It's films like these that deserve to be seen on the big screen and shared in theatres around the world.
Directed by: Evan Miller
Written By: Evan Miller and Hardy Janson
Starring: Adrianne Palicki, Henry Thomas, Ciara Bravo, Odette Annable, Matt Lauria, Joey Oglesby, Austin Nichols, Mona Lee Fultz
Produced by: Evan Miller, Ezra Venetos, Adrianne Palicki, Caitlin McFarland, Emily Gipson, Beau Harris
Executive Produced by: Charlie Jones, Challen Cates, Scott Grimes
To learn more about Due West, visit DueWestFilm.com or follow them on Instagram @duewestfilm.
If you or someone you know needs access to resources regarding birth control, STD screenings, and other sexual health-related options, then please visit plannedparenthood.com to find a location near you.