Trying to Unplug ‘Unplanned’
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by Brent Bozell and Tim Graham,
“Unplanned” debuted in 1,059 theaters on March 29 and grossed $6.1 million on its opening weekend, double the commercial expectations. It received an A-plus CinemaScore from audiences. It has been expanded to 1,700 sites and is captivating millions with its heart-wrenching portrayal of the reality of abortion and the organization that champions the atrocity.
Unsurprisingly, “Unplanned” has received the same opprobrium from the cultural elites as last year’s pro-life movie “Gosnell.” A half dozen major music labels refused to license their tunes for the movie, including Disney, Universal Music and Sony/ATV. Cable TV networks refused to run ads for the movie — USA, Lifetime, HGTV, the Travel Channel, the Cooking Channel, the Food Network … even the Hallmark Channel!
The movie was trashed on TBS. Unfunny radical feminist Samantha Bee bizarrely claimed the movie was “mostly made up” and mocked it for suggesting that taking on the nation’s largest and most powerful abortion conglomerate is scary.
Even social media giants were hostile. On the opening weekend, the movie’s Twitter account was suspended for a time, which Twitter claimed was a mistake, as if anyone believes that line any longer. Then fans of the movie couldn’t successfully follow the account. Twitter has a nasty habit of blocking pro-life material as “inflammatory.”
Newspapers refused to review the movie. The New York Times reviewed 12 new movies on debut day, but not “Unplanned.”
The Washington Post had no review from its own critics in the “Weekend” section but directed readers to its Common Sense Media page for parents, where those outside critics said the film was inappropriate for children under 17. This camp thinks abortion is appropriate for teenage girls but a movie about abortion is not.
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