What we know or what we think we know can surprisingly be very little in the expanse of this large world. So many people and so many stories of tragedy, economic issues, and a plethora of varying problems that it's sometimes hard to keep up. And this is exactly where films like Every Last Child come in. Far from anything you will learn about in school, this affecting documentary is gripping, heart-wrenching, informative, and a true tale of human perseverance in the wake of something so terrible and dangerous.
In 2012, the Taliban banned polio vaccinations for the majority of Pakistan, mainly affecting the areas of Peshawar and Karachi, along with some other norther cities. This ban led to a rise in polio cases that spread to other countries. Pakistan, one of only three countries in the world to remain with polio, was facing up to thousands of cases while the World Health Organization (WHO) and several local polio workers ban together to eradicate polio once and for all. They go door-to-door in order to give oral vaccinations to children, even while the Taliban continue to kill or kidnap the polio workers to prevent them from doing their jobs.
Every Last Child is a very important documentary. Director Tom Roberts takes the time to cover several Pakistani stories – from a local woman who lost both her niece and sister-in-law to a Taliban shooting while providing vaccinations, to the leader and PR consultant for the WHO, to people directly affected by the disease. Polio, which targets the nervous system and leaves one paralyzed, was also seen by a minority of naysayers in Pakistan as being a conspiracy, the vaccinations created by the U.S. and Europe to target Muslims. So it is indeed that Roberts encompasses several points of view to give us a more well-rounded perspective, but remains focused on the polio effects and action plan of the larger organizations.
The film is beautifully done and effectively shot. Roberts takes care to treat this subject with the severity it actually entails, but refuses to create a over-dramatization where it isn’t needed. The images and stories that sweep through the film are useful enough without having a dramatic voice over, which Roberts replaces with brief sentences where necessary detailing statistics or what cannot be shown to audiences by camera alone. The topic is tragic, but highlights human perseverance to the highest degree as shown in everyone’s efforts to make polio extinct. The mission, as well as the documentary, is an important one and Roberts gives it the wonderful attention it needs in a jolting reality-driven film that will stay with you after it's over.
Rating: 4 out of 5
