‘Zurawski v Texas’ Review: A Harrowing Documentary That Makes the Case for Reproductive Healthcare as a National Necessity

In many ways, “Zurawski v Texas” is a film about America itself and the governmental failings that have brought us to this moment. In the two years since the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade , women and pregnant people have struggled to receive proper reproductive care. This urgent and necessary documentary makes plain the obvious evil of an uncaring government that insists on gaining full control of the bodies of its people, unmoved by the pain that follows.

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When Amanda Zurawski’s water broke after 18 weeks, she was denied an emergency abortion and went into septic shock, having to spend three days in the ICU. She had already picked out a name for her unborn daughter — Willow — but the child never made it. As a result of this terrifying ordeal, Zurawski’s tubes were damaged and had to be reconstructed. Unlikely to be able to carry another child, she and her husband Josh are forced to turn to surrogacy to expand their family. In an effort to prevent this from happening to other women and pregnant people, Zurawski made the decision to sue the state of Texas with the help of Molly Duane, senior attorney for the Center for Reproductive Rights. They are soon joined by another woman, with a story just as heartbreaking. Samantha Casiano found out her unborn child had no chance of survival at 20 weeks, but was denied an abortion. Unable to take off work to get the procedure out of state, Casiano was forced to carry the child to term and watch her struggle to breathe for four hours before passing away. Already a mother, Casiano is forced to bury her child while grieving alongside her husband and children.

Together, Zurawski and Casiano represent two demographics of women failed by the abortion ban — childless women desperate to start a family and mothers who genuinely want to expand their family, but are forced to stop trying as the government makes the process needlessly painful. And not just for the patients; doctors suffer as well, under threat of prison time for simply providing care. Before the events of the film, Dr. Austin Dennard found out her pregnancy was diagnosed with a fatal condition, she was forced to leave the state to get an abortion. As an OBGYN, Dennard was disturbed by the fact that she and her colleagues were being prevented from providing proper care. Just as an abortion was denied to her, Dennard has been forced to turn her patients away as well, encouraging them to go out of state for care. Now pregnant again and determined to show up for all the doctors threatened by the Texas government and the pregnant people crying out for basic medical reproductive care.

“Zurawski v Texas” follows Zurawski, Casiano, Dr. Dennard, and Duane as they sue the Texas government for failing women and pregnant people throughout the state. Directors Maisie Crow and Abbie Perrault take us through every aspect of the legal battle they face, from studying and case-prepping to taking the stand, facing questions from uncaring prosecutors with only the bottom line in mind. Thwarted at every turn by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, these brave women struggle to put public faces to the struggle for access to medically necessary abortions.

Their stories are devastating to witness, with the filmmakers showing us every bit of emotional vulnerability from these women and their families. Upon receiving heartbreaking news late in the film, Zurawski is enveloped in her husband’s arms. Her microphone is muffled by the embrace, causing the sound to distort momentarily as she sobs. In Casiano’s home, her husband grows distant from her in mourning. Traumatized by the experience of burying her child, Halo, Casiano gets her tubes tied so that she’ll never have to go through that kind of pain again.

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But there are moments of hope too—when Zurawski’s parents find out what their daughter went through, it rightfully disturbs them and shifts their opinion of the Republican party. Zurawski’s mother even explicitly states that she will no longer be voting red. Though perhaps a small victory, it’s a clear, damning reminder of the way American politics is based more on tribalism than actual rigourous engagement with and interrogation of the policies that shape the lives of so many people in this country. Decisions are often made to serve an overall political aesthetic, whether it’s good for the people or not.

When governments restrict reproductive care, lawmakers are essentially making the argument that once someone becomes pregnant, their unborn child is the property of the state. And yet, when Casiano is forced to bury her baby, she receives no financial compensation for the burial, funeral or headstone. Neither she nor her husband are provided with grief counseling for this tremendous — and preventable — loss. When one of her children asks her what an abortion would have done for her daughter, she tells him that Halo would have “gotten to Heaven sooner.” If pro-life legislation is so invested in the soul of the child, how could they argue with this thinking? It boggles the mind. But perhaps there is no logic involved in the politics of cruelty and control. And so, history repeats itself. Hopefully, films like this will help us break the cycle because something has got to give.

Grade: A

“Zurawski v Texas” premiered at the 2024 Telluride Film Festival . It is currently seeking distribution.

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