Film

The Business of Being Born

Name: The Business of Being Born
Genre: Documentary
Released: 2008
Cast: Abby Epstein, Ina May Gaskin, Ricki Lake, Julia Barnett, Tina Cassidy

Investigative journalism

Ricki Lake and filmmaker Abby Epstein investigate how American obstetrics transformed birth into a medical and commercial enterprise. Part detective story, part manifesto, it's conversational and urgent—weaving personal narrative with systemic critique. For anyone preparing for parenthood, or simply curious how institutions reshape something supposedly natural.

TMDb rating

3.2

If you liked this

More than a Game2008

Follows LeBron James and his high school teammates; asks how systems (basketball, money, talent) reshape human relationships. Same DNA as *TBOBB*—institutional critique wrapped in intimate human story.

But Sports-focused. If you don't care about basketball, the metaphor may not land hard enough.

Blackfish2013

Investigative documentary that questions an entire industry's practices through the lens of one orca. Builds the same case: profitable systems harm the beings within them. Genuinely unsettling.

But Deeply distressing. The suffering is real and not softened for comfort. Brutal to watch.

Fed Up2014

Katie Couric narrates an investigation into how food industry practices shape obesity and illness. Same structure: institution, profit motive, human cost. Clear-eyed anger underneath.

But Somewhat didactic. The message overwhelms nuance; solutions feel thin compared to the problem.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Business of Being Born

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Call the Midwife2012

*TBOBB* argues hospitals medicalized birth unnecessarily; *Call the Midwife* shows what birth-as-community-practice looked like before medicalization arrived. They're answering each other across decades.

Dramatized series about midwives in 1950s East London delivering babies without hospital infrastructure. Shows birth as community practice, not institution—the inverse of *TBOBB*'s America. Tenderhearted and structurally illuminating.

But Period drama pastiche. If you can't stand costume television sentimentality, the nostalgia will suffocate you. Also very long—nine seasons.

Fyre2019

Documents how hype and commerce conspired to defraud people. Different subject, same inquiry: how do systems lie to us? Darkly funny where *TBOBB* is earnest.

But Lighter in stakes—nobody's health hangs in the balance. Feels almost trivial after you've watched the birth film.

Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Catastrophe2016

Medical system critique from inside the system; asks hard questions about institutional incentives and transparency. Shares *TBOBB*'s skepticism of mainstream medical authority.

But This one is genuinely controversial. Many of its claims are disputed or discredited. Requires strong media literacy to watch responsibly.

Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Catastrophe poster

The Bleeding Edge2018

Netflix documentary about medical device regulation. Asks: who profits when medicine innovates faster than safety can? Direct sibling to *TBOBB*'s core concern.

But Bureaucratic in places. Less emotionally immediate than a birth story. Can feel like a policy paper.

Orgasm Inc.2009

Examines how pharmaceutical companies marketed sexual dysfunction and female sexuality. Same era, same critical lens: medicine as commerce, bodies as market. Smaller scope, sharp focus.

But Limited distribution. Harder to find. Also rather dry in execution, more lecture than narrative.