Citizen Ruth (1996)

Alexander Payne's first film is definitely one to watch. This is one of the few Hollywood films that is actually pro-choice.
Ruth Stoops (Laura Dern) has issues. She huffs paint, cleaning fluids and glue and she doesn't understand birth control at all. She has had four children all of whom were taken away from her. In the past eighteen months, she has been arrested sixteen times for huffing something, six times she was placed in a rehab facility but that clearly didn't work. She also awkwardly claims to the judge that she was only an unfit mother for two of her children, not for all four of them. And now she's pregnant again, father nowhere in sight.
The judge charges her with harming her unborn fetus and that has results he could have never imagined. She is 'rescued' by some pro life religious people, the Stoneys, Gail (Mary Kay Place) and Norm (Kurtwood Smith). They have two children, Sheryl (Alicia Witt), who is bad, sneaks out of the house to party and even is brave enough to have her boyfriend (or some random guy) sleep over at her house while her parents have choir practice. Their younger child is a miracle. Or so they claim.
They are thrilled that Ruth is going to clean up her act and have her baby. Yet, she blatantly tells the nurse at the clinic that she wants an abortion. She is strongly advised against that and is even shown a video describing abortion. She is stunned and mentions meekly that she has slept in a dumpster so many she slept on dead babies which truly does sadden her.
But she can't stand begging women at the clinic not to have an abortion. She sneaks away and gets high and punches the miracle baby in the face and Gail is furious. Fortunately, Diane (Swoosie Kurtz) decides that the Stoneys don't have to take all of the responsibility themselves, plus she has experience with working with drug addicts. But Diane is actually a plant. She is actually firmly pro-choice and is delighted when Ruth decides that she actually wants an abortion.
But the pro-life people get together and raise money. Ruth is thrilled with the offer and immediately changes her mind. Fortunately, Harlan (M.C. Gainey) decides to get money off the table; he will personally donate 15,000 dollars (the same amount) so Ruth can have her free will back again.
Each side is adamant that she side with them while Ruth's voice sort of gets left out. I predicted that this could all just end if she has a miscarriage and then that happens. While that is probably for the best given that Ruth continues to drink and huff fumes while she was pregnant, it still felt cheap. But Ruth isn't able to tell Diane the news. Instead, she decides that she will have the abortion and just take the money and run. Jessica Weiss (Tippi Hedren) arrives and they fly her to the clinic in a helicopter and then bulletproof limo, all the while there are protesters from both sides surrounding the clinic. And Ruth just knocks out the guy guarding the bathroom window and runs away, even though her story has made tons of headlines and her face has been featured on the news, she is still able to get the money and run away. No one even notices which is just sad. They are like politicians, so focused on their side winning that they don't actually listen to what the people (in this specific case Ruth) actually wants. And Ruth was still debating the issue because each side had valid points and I do feel that she was upset and sad by the miscarriage though that didn't last long because money is the main thing she wants. Ruth is also not as stupid as some of the characters believe. Sure, she blows Diane's cover, but her childhood was rough and she wishes that she could have turned out better. Who knows what will happen, but for now each side has a good fight, which they love and Ruth has money so she will probably overdose and die by the time they find her.
In addition to discussing a good issue, the film also has good performances with Dern being especially brilliant and the supporting cast which includes Burt Reynolds as an odd sort of character who might be having an inappropriate relationship with one of the babies he saved and Kelly Preston as Diane's lesbian lover. And I loved the gritty realism of the film including the gross act that is huffing which colors Dern's mouth gray. Sure, this film isn't perfect with a few odd exchanges between Norm and Ruth that probably should have been addressed or left out of the film. This is a film that people should see and think about. Some people make the right choices for the wrong reasons while the common man gets ignored. Grade: A-