Since it first began to appear over two decades ago, the looped pink ribbon that symbolizes breast cancer awareness has become an instantly recognizable mark, emblazoned on thousands of products and carpeting the landscape every October on the occasion of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. It might seem hard to find fault with such an unambiguously virtuous symbol, particularly when the disease in question is so feared and so lethal. Who could possibly be opposed to cancer awareness, or in favor of cancer? Unfortunately, as Susan King’s 2008 book Pink Ribbons, Inc. lays bare, the spread of that hopeful little carnation-colored curl raises numerous questions about the intersection of health, philanthropy, and politics in the West. Where is all the money donated for breast cancer research going, and what has it accomplished? What benefit is gleaned from the proliferation of kitschy merchandise such as pink teddy bears and fried chicken buckets?
King’s consideration of this live-wire subject is given the documentary treatment in a new feature film, also entitled Pink Ribbons, Inc. Produced by the National Film Board of Canada and directed by Swiss-Canadian filmmaker Léa Pool (Set Me Free, Lost & Delirious), this cinematic Pink Ribbons follows the brisk, facts-plus-pathos approach that has become de rigueur in agitprop documentary film. Pool is known for her narrative features, but she handles the documentary form like a veteran, blending talking-head interviews, archival clips from the history of the breast cancer movement, and animated special effects that lay out statistics and damning quotes. The film also provides original footage of corporate-sponsored breast cancer marches in San Francisco and Washington, D.C., and of a support group for women currently in the final Stage 4 of the disease.
Viewers who have already digested King’s book, or who are otherwise familiar with the scientific, cultural, and political critiques of “breast cancer culture,” won’t discover much that’s fresh in Pink Ribbons, Inc. Pool’s method, while polished, is essentially functional, and the film is perfectly comfortable prioritizing its critical thesis far above aesthetic ambitions. Still, Pink Ribbons does a tidy job of tying together the disparate, troublesome aspects of contemporary breast cancer philanthropy. Crass marketing, dodgy fundraising methods, and the lack of transparency and coordination in research are only part of the tale. The film also touches on the slipperier social and cultural aspects of cancer culture, such as the questionable narrative established when one speaks of “surviving” and “beating” a poorly-understood degenerative disease. Wide-ranging and passionate, Pool’s film takes a laudable stand for greater skepticism and activism in matters of women’s health. In light of Pink Ribbons, Inc.’s timid adherence to prevailing documentary forms, the unassailable virtue of its message proves to be a saving grace.
