Film Journal International Review

 

by Eric Monder

The little man of Little Man is a "preemie" baby named Nicholas, who becomes the center of an ethical and moral debate about giving birth to children with disabilities. Nicole Conn's film about her own experience helping to bring Nicholas into the world makes for an interesting and courageously candid documentary and, thankfully, the filmmaker does not try to present easy answers.

Conn tells the story along with her partner, political activist Gwen Baba. The two women had formed a strong union and already used a surrogate mother to give birth to their first child, Gabrielle. This time the women disagree on the decision to proceed with having the surrogate, Mary, give birth to the underdeveloped Nicholas. Conn refuses to back down from her position that Nicholas should be born, while Baba and most of the couple's friends feel the birth should be terminated. Of course, it doesn't help that hospital and medical bureaucracy intrudes on the life-and-death situation.

The personal diary approach to Little Man is currently in vogue in films and television shows-we get handheld shots of the two women with Nicholas, plus "talking-head" interviews (with doctors, friends, and Conn and Baba). As a story told in "flashback," Little Mancleverly builds suspense around whether or not Nicholas survives. There are also other strands: how the sexuality of the parents may or may not have impacted the situation; how the idea of "pro-choice" is turned on its head when the two women find themselves on opposite sides of the abortion issue; and how using surrogate mothers may cause a set of additional ethical dilemmas.

If Little Man can be faulted, it would be in the area of not expressing the point of view of Mary, the surrogate. Her role is treated like an afterthought-she's barely seen and never speaks. As for Conn and Baba, they are rather earnest and humorless, so the viewer may be more engaged by the situation than the personalities involved. In fact, Conn's affectless voice-over commentary sounds a bit like the old "Saturday Night Live" spoof of the National Public Radio women played by Ana Gasteyer and Molly Shannon.

But for the most part, Little Man is an engrossing and enlightening portrayal of a complex, real-life experience and, to her credit, Conn does not flinch from showing the sad details. (One wonders how Conn was able to film the events while she lived them -- it is a very impressive feat!)

If nothing else, Little Man provides an instructive look at a challenging situation. The film might actually help some people who find themselves in the same or a similar circumstance. It tells a story that should move almost anyone, even those who do not relate directly to the people involved.