When Louise Joy Brown became the first “test tube” baby to survive pregnancy and birth on July 25, 1978, the world had mixed feelings. On one hand, Brown’s entry into the world via in vitro fertilization proved those with infertility diagnoses were not immediately limited to a life without biological children. On the other hand, Brown’s conception and birth introduced a whole host of moral and ethical dilemmas that are still relevant today.
Netflix’s “JOY – The Birth of IVF,” a period drama, uses choppy storytelling to trace embryologist Jean Purdy, biologist Robert Edwards, and obstetrician Patrick Steptoe’s decade-long attempt to “make the impossible possible” with the lab conception that ultimately led to Brown’s existence.
While “Joy” attempts to grapple with some of the ethical hurdles facing IVF, the movie ultimately fails to fully…
