■ The Market ★★★ ½ — The Market is about the illegal organ trade in India. It follows the lives of two women and their families, one from India who wants to sell her kidney to pay off debts, and the other is from Nanaimo and has been waiting five years for a new kidney. In an attempt to save her life, her family wants her to explore the option of buying an organ from India.
The most compelling moments in this well-shot documentary are set in an Indian fishing village devastated by the Tsunami of 2004. You’ll meet a woman attempting to broker the sale of her sister’s kidney. The process is fascinating, from the donor’s emotional struggle to the doctors who profit from the illegal surgeries.
The scenes in Nanaimo are less engaging, but it is interesting to see how kidney failure affects three generations of one family. It also shows the moral dilemma facing the family.
The Market puts a personal face on an ethical debate and poses provocative questions. Although you may not walk away with the answers you were looking for, it is worth spending time with these brave women.
• 7:15pm Mon., Feb. 7 at Cap 6
• 4:30pm Thurs., Feb. 10 at Cap 6
Film puts a personal face on the market for illegal organs