The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (2017)

When I saw the only other user review so far was negative I couldn't resist writing one of my own. This a powerful story, and I disagree with the other reviewer both about its alleged pointlessness but also that it should have been set entirely in the context of Henrietta's life. This story isn't just about her; it's about what they took form her, and how she died, and how the medical world cloned her cells and used them to fix and fight all kinds of problems while in contrast she herself died of cancer and the hole that her absence left in her family's life. It's about the heartbreak her family has to live with everyday, without her, in a world full of people who (for the most part) seem more interested in making money from her than who she was or what she left behind. I'm even more desperate to get my hands on the book now than I was when I saw the trailer and I am extremely disappointed that I didn't find it on the shelves of my local book stores and that I will be forced to order it online. I can't wait to delve into this story further and get further immersed in the details of it; I know movies (especially ones based on books) are frequently disappointing and too often pressed into the same stereotypical molds, so I am eager to see how the story unfolds in the book.

My friend started a Movie Club. On Sundays, one of us posts movie that we all should see during following week and on next Sunday we discuss it and choose next movie. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks is biography drama made for television with Oprah in leading role. Definitely not my cup of tea. But to avoid being party-breaker at the very beginning of the movie club I sat to see it. Honestly, I was bored.During '50s, cells of anonymous Afro-american woman who was dying of cancer made revolutionary breakthrough in medicine. Half century later, journalist Rebecca Skloot decides to write book about HELA cells, Henrietta Lacks, woman whose cells are in question, her life and family. If I understood correctly, this movie is adaptation of that book.Movie follows Rebecca during her research for the book and her relations with Henrietta's children, with lots of flashbacks on this family's past. Past full of drama, emotional trauma and mental illness. But there's almost nothing about HELA cells and their application in modern medicine. Technically speaking movie is solid and I have no objections. Oprah nailed the role of Henrietta's daughter Deborah. But honestly, I do not see the point of making this movie, except to set up a stage for Oprah, who besides leading role is also producer of this film, to show her remarkable acting skills. Biography dramas usually present lives of people whose achievements left mark in history. They bring us closer to their lives and personality and show us how they came to get into history. Henrietta Lacks as person didn't do anything worthy of biography drama. Incidentally, her body produced something that made breakthrough in medicine, but I don't see how it is her merit and what her children and their family drama have to do with HELA cells and research. As family and as individuals these people are completely irrelevant for history and I have no idea why would anybody write about them.6/10

I liked this film. I don't care about reading the book, as several reviewers recommended. Books are one form of media; film another form. I don't expect them to be the same.I thought the acting is this film was very good, in some cases excellent. Oprah Winfrey is excellent here, and although I have long been impressed with her as a media mogul, I haven't always been impressed with her acting. To me, she proves herself here. Rose Byrne as the White girl researching the story of Lacks is very effective. Courtney B. Vance -- a wonderful actor -- is wasted here. Same for Leslie Uggams, although I enjoyed seeing her. The rest of the actors, none of whom I was very familiar with (although I did recognize several), were also quite good.And yet I give this film only a "6". Why? Very simple (and I know I'm not the first to point this out). I didn't get to know much about Henrietta Lacks!!!!! The story is about Oprah Winfrey's character. The movie is still good, but the title character is almost secondary to the film. That doesn't make sense to me.So to me, to use a baseball analogy, the film get a hit to second base, but there's no home run. Worth watching, but disappointing.

I didn't read the book but I know its fame and praise. So for me the film worked very well knowing more about the process of writing the book and Henrietta's family than what the immortal cells did to mankind. I think who read the book didn't like this kind of p.o.w. I understand, but the film itself is very well done.And I will read the book as soon as I can.