Side Effects is an Independent film made on a shoestring budget that attempts to make a documentary about the ethics of drug marketing but couch it within a romantic comedy. First time director Kathleen Slattery-Moschkau certainly knows her subject, as she worked for ten years as a pharmaceutical company rep. The theory is that these reps provide a service akin to political lobbyists but for doctors, educating them on the use of medications. The truth of the matter is that they actually have no scientific or medical background, and are there to do one thing only. They must get doctors to prescribe more and more of their products. Doctor prescription info is available to the drug companies for every territory, and drug reps are evaluated and compensated based on sales figures in their territory. To achieve these ends, they memorize sales pitches furnished them by the company, and offer no end of gifts and favors, including food, dinners, free samples, and branded gifts to doctors and staff.

Katherine Heigl was a good choice for the lead in this film. She is recruited out of college with her political science degree by a drug company recruiter based on her looks and personality. In fact, these drug reps all look like Ken and Barbie, and all drive new cars. I see them in all the good spots in front of the medical clinic I use. The reason for the new cars is that they are company furnished.

In this film, Katherine is not doing real well, then several things happen. She meets a guy who is quitting the industry because he finds it corrupt, and has saved enough money to stop working and build his own home. They have a developing relationship, and knowing him gives her the courage to leave what she has come to regard as a morally questionable job. However, financial concerns won't let her just quit immediately, so she decides to leave in 180 days. She also decides to start telling doctors the truth. As an example, here is one scene, more or less.

Why is your product better that the competition?

It isn't.

Is it cheaper?

No, it is actually a lot more expensive.

Side effects?

Your patients won't shit for a week.

Then why should I prescribe yours?

Because you have the honest truth about it, as opposed to a lot of hype that may or not be true about the other products.

She suddenly becomes the top rep in the company, starts reaping huge financial benefits, and is fast-tracked to management. This, of course, gives her conflicting emotions. Things get even more interesting when she is made privy to information showing that the new drug awaiting approval may be killing people, and the company is covering it up.

The film has very important content, but, at least to me, it was not very effectively delivered. The director makes a valid point that a lot more people will watch a romantic comedy than a documentary, but the formula romantic comedy aspect was not enough to carry the film, and the real message needed much more impact. I would expect that as more people see the DVD and weigh in, female scores will generally be higher than male ones, as the director included a lot of girl moments, and the apparent plot of the story is the choice between career and relationship. Heigl was a rather likeable main character, so I didn't mind spending time with her, and I am also critical of the pharmaceutical industry for price gouging, unethical advertising, and taking all the good parking places at my local medical clinic. The short documentary included on the DVD claims that there is one drug rep for every 4 doctors in the US. Companies claim that this doesn't add to the cost of drugs. They also claim that their media advertising doesn't affect cost. The DVD includes two commentaries, one related to the film-making process, and the other focusing on the pharmaceutical industry. There is also an excerpt from a documentary, and a making-of featurette. One of the interesting facts brought out in the documentary was that deaths caused by use of a drug are often not made public because they are protected trade secrets. Before I started writing this review, I was going to say that the film failed to make its points effectively, and give it a low mark, but I have to say the DVD package does, in fact, deliver the message. So, the romantic comedy gets a very low C- as a by-the-numbers romantic comedy with a charismatic female lead. The documentary aspect of the film gets a D+, as the message was somewhat subdued. The entire package rates a C, and is well worth the watch.

Katherine Heigl shows her left breast from the side twice, once in good light, and the other standing on the leach lines of the director's septic tank in the dark.

Birthright (1951)

Birthright is a sex education film produced by Columbia University and the State of Georgia, and is a warning about syphilis. The subject matter includes not only the subject of syphilis, which was specifically proscribed by the Hays Code, but also adultery, breast exposure, and actual film of a breach childbirth (added after production). This clearly could never have gotten a Hays Code certificate, and later played the drive-in circuit as an exploitation film. It is a wonder to me that it ever got made at all in 1951, especially in the south.

Boyce Brown and Marjory Morris are living with her parents and collaborating on a chicken farm They have one daughter. Starting the chicken ranch has not been without some difficulty, and Grandma and Grandpa are rather crotchety. One night after a fight, Brown heads into town to have a few beers at the local cafe. He is in no shape to drive home, and the waitress takes him to her place to sober up. Nature takes its course.

Then two things happen, Morris announces that she is pregnant again, and the waitress, Paula Haygood, discovers that her husband's parting gift to her was syphilis. As she didn't really know Brown, she couldn't warn him. Fortunately, the town started a health screening for communicable diseases, and that process revealed that Brown was infected. What follows is their worry as to whether or not mother is infected, and/or baby is OK.

This film was part of a Something Weird Video sex-ed film release, which includes intermission promos for sex education booklets, and another film called The Wrong Rut, which started as a film about the tragedy of unwanted pregnancy out of wedlock, but in a very un-Hays like move, gave the film a happy ending. Sean Penn's father, Leo Penn, played the cad who knocked the innocent girl up, and Ida Lupino stepped in as director to complete the film when Elmer Cliften (Assassin of Youth) became ill. This was her first directing effort. The original release was called Not Wanted. It was later spiced up with color film of a cesarean childbirth to play the drive-in exploitation circuit in the early 60's. These films always had outlandish claims as to what they showed, but would be followed by a "square reel," often of a Doris Wishman nudist film, to give the people their share of tits and keep them from tearing the theater apart. For additional profit, they sold $1.00 sex education booklets at intermission.

I routinely buy everything Something Weird Video releases, but didn't have high hopes for this one. I ended up watching both films start to finish, as well as many of the special features. It is a real time capsule, but won't interest many. I feel they did a very good job with this DVD, but it is not for everyone. We will call the genre 60s exploitation, and make this a C-.

Paula Haywood shows a breast in the sex scene.