THE SURROGATE

The moral basis of the film - would you have an abortion knowing your child will have Down Syndrome - is incredibly heavy, and even if the film doesn't deal with it ideally at times, it constantly keeps you thinking what you would do. Add in the fact that the legal parents don't want to keep the child but the surrogate does, and there is a lot more here than one may think.

My biggest problem with the film is with some of the characterisations. Jess is almost too perfect at times; she too much of an activist, she's always a tad too right, but most of this goes away by the mid-point. Her friends Josh and Aaron start as main characters but become background noise in the second half - which is fine as the focus becomes Jess, but they only come in to be one-sided and almost the film's villains. I think there could have been some stronger arguments and conversations between the three characters.

The film also follows Bridget (Brooke Bloom), who has a son with Down Syndrome who Jess follows to learn from. I think there was a better way to introduce someone with DS than just someone to observe, but again after the first couple of scenes, this does become smoother.

While the film has a few hiccups, the package as a whole comes across as a truly moving experience that challenges the audience's morals with really thought-provoking dialogue. Along with Jasmine Batchelor's phenomenal performance, 'The Surrogate' is an important film that everyone should check out.