The boundary between earnestness and controversy is so narrow, and crossing it is far easier than many may anticipate. This has prevented many filmmakers from covering subjects that would otherwise be considered fertile ground for engaging and thrilling projects, since the idea of unsettling the status quo is not entirely appealing, especially for those starting in the industry. Alexander Payne is not always viewed as someone who pushes boundaries as a filmmaker, and while his films are well-liked and always very pleasant, they exist within a canon of likeable but not revolutionary – or rather, this is how they tend to be perceived at a cursory glance, which gives off the illusion that they are limited, simple works that bring warmth and comfort rather than evoking challenging conversations. However, one simply has to look to his very first directorial endeavour to see this is not entirely the case, with Citizen Ruth being one of the most ambitious debuts of the 1990s, precisely because of how revolutionary it felt to see a young filmmaker aiming to provoke conversation to the point of touching on a subject that has always been contentious, and remains so to the present moment. The film follows the titular character, an aimless drug addict who falls pregnant for the fifth time, and is given an intimidating ultimatum: terminate the pregnancy and have the drug charges levelled against her lessened, or face the prospect of giving birth while in prison. What seems like an easy choice soon proves to be far more challenging when Ruth is taken in by a group of well-meaning evangelicals who promise to provide her shelter before revealing their intentions, which are centred around pro-life Christian values – and it doesn’t take long for those on the other side to set their sights on Ruth as well, seeing her as a prime candidate to be the mascot for their burgeoning pro-choice movement. Suddenly, the young woman is placed in a precarious position, and despite being told that she has a choice, she discovers that everyone around her is far too insistent on deciding on her behalf, leading to some incredibly awkward and revealing moments in a film that is as darkly comedic as it is profoundly bleak in how it examines the subject of abortion and how the cultural divide has driven an entire society apart over something that should not be nearly this contentious an issue.

Abortion is an issue that has been discussed for generations, and we can tell that perceptions around the subject, as well as how open society has been to exploring it, through how it factors into art at various points in the culture. There has never been a point where it has been viewed as trivial or negligible, and it continues to be a pressing issue, but over time filmmakers have grown far less hesitant to base stories around women exploring the circumstances around unwanted or accidental pregnancies. Whether found in early underground or arthouse works made by radical feminist filmmakers, or those who were more insistent on bringing the idea to the mainstream, the subject has been explored enough to have a solid foundation from which Payne could build a relatively strong response in the form of Citizen Ruth, which is a surprisingly partisan depiction of the debate. One of Payne’s great merits as a filmmaker is his ferocious humanity, and how he often tends to refuse to take a specific side on certain debates, choosing instead to allow for some degree of ambiguity – throughout Citizen Ruth, both sides of the abortion debate are viewed as having their merits and shortcomings. The pro-life advocates are shown as caring, nurturing people who build their beliefs on old-fashioned Christian values, but conversely believe that they have the right to force those same beliefs onto those around them, dictating what is appropriate. On the other side of the aisle, the pro-choice campaigners are shown as open-minded, liberal and willing to put themselves in harm’s way for a cause in which they truly believe, but are also seen as militant to the point of being willing to make an example of themselves, becoming radical and deranged and wanting to demonstrate some kind of spectacle. Where the director himself stands on the issue is neither clear nor relevant to the actual premise or execution of Citizen Ruth, which is far more invested in the development of the titular character and how she is caught in the middle of this debate, being the perfect embodiment of the many women who are forced to choose a side and viewed as pawns in a vicious cultural battle between two feuding sides, both of which want to have dominance over the other, which is neither constructive nor progressive.

Payne’s greatest strength is that he is an actor’s director, and he always draws out the very best in his actors, who in turn usually are more than willing to surrender to his unconventional vision, knowing that they are in good hands and that he will extract memorable work from them should they allow him the chance to shape their talents to fit whatever story is being told. The protagonist in Citizen Ruth is played by Laura Dern, who was at this point an arthouse darling – the daughter of Diane Ladd and Bruce Dern, icons of the New Hollywood movement (and the latter himself would go on to work with Payne many years later in his greatest performance, Nebraska), and someone who worked laboriously to forge her own path. This was by far her most interesting period as a performer – her chameleonic talents combined with her unique style of acting made her unlike any other performer, and her unusual ability to shift any just about any persona made her one of the most versatile actors of her generation (something that contemporary filmmakers have seem to forgotten since she seems to have been typecast in the same kinds of roles in recent years), and Citizen Ruth is a contender for maybe her strongest work to date, at least in terms of pure, raw intensity. There is something so earnest about her performance as this character, someone who is caught between two warring sides and forced to become their mascot, having her humanity removed and being viewed as nothing more than just a figurehead for a movement. Dern is exceptional, being able to play up the hysterics when they are required, but also the quieter moments, tempering her performance to be perfectly in tune with the surrounding scenes. The supporting cast is equally as strong – Mary Kay Place, Swoosie Kurtz, Kurtwood Smith, Kenneth Mars and many other terrific journeyman character actors appear in smaller roles, as do notable Hollywood icons Burt Reynolds and Tippi Hedren as the proverbial “final bosses” of the respective political movements around which the film is centred – and yet, everything ultimately goes back to Dern, whose performance is subtle, moving and genuinely powerful, while still being outrageously funny when it was required.

Beyond the performances, Payne’s specific approach to the material is strengthened primarily by his deep commitment to creating a film that is as emotionally resonant as it is intellectually insightful. There are many complex layers beneath the surface of Citizen Ruth, which is a film that certainly takes several risks in terms of the subject matter and how it came about on-screen – even the slight deviation from this well-constructed sense of tone would have massively derailed the film and made it far less effective than it ended up being, which makes us admire just how productive it was when it came to adopting a specific tone. Looking at it from a distance, it’s fascinating to see how revolutionary this film was – this is a film in which Payne is tackling very complex cultural and social themes, weaving together conversations around religion and politics, but doing so in such a way that it feels fresh and exciting, rather than didactic. Based on the subject matter, we may expect Citizen Ruth to be a dour drama, but the fact that the director chose to approach it as a dark comedy only adds more substance to the overall experience, since the humour allows him to see the world through a radically different lens, with the absurdity of both sides of the debate being highlighted through the irreverent, almost perverse black comedy. Payne has always had a penchant for the darkly comedic, and this film is a perfect exemplification of this in practice – it certainly some of his most daring work, and he skirts around the edges of controversy in a way that is quite remarkable, with his willingness to go out on a limb despite it being his directorial debut being one of the many reasons we can appreciate the effort. He also doesn’t allow the film to be driven by sentimentality – there are several tender moments, but they’re not entirely definitive of the film, being there to punctuate certain scenes and add nuance rather than guide the narrative, which is only strengthened by the director’s steadfast commitment to crafting this poignant and unforgettable exploration of a young woman’s journey to decide on her own body, and the pressure she feels from both sides to make a choice.

Citizen Ruth is more relevant today than ever – without diving too deep into political discourse, issues around female body autonomy and the right of women to choose continues to be a contentious issue, and debate has never been more intense than it is at the present moment, especially when political discourse threatens to undo all the major strides forward that progressive politics have done to advocate for women’s rights. The fact that a film released nearly thirty years ago can still be so incredibly relevant to the point where it could have been set in the present day without even a single word of the script being changed is both frightening and deeply worrisome and shows just how little the discourse around this deeply personal issue has changed over the years. A film like Citizen Ruth should be a time capsule, not something that we watch and feel that encroaching sense of dread as we realize how it almost predicted the times in which we are currently living. However, this isn’t to say that it presents an entirely bleak view – there is still some degree of nuance that exists around the edges of this film, a gentle honesty that works alongside the radicalism of the humour to create something earnest and daring, a depiction of woman’s rights that is forward-thinking and honest, and removes any discourse around actually taking a side and instead places the emphasis less on promoting the value of Christian values or the importance of abortion access, but rather on the right to choose – having the choice is more important than either, and the resolution the film reaches, while somewhat brutal and sad, is perhaps the only fair one in terms of allowing for a conclusion that doesn’t take a side and allows the character to retreat with her agency intact. It’s a challenging subject, and some of its views are somewhat outdated – but yet, it remains oddly prescient, and Payne’s willingness to have these difficult discussions is nothing if not wholeheartedly admirable, leading to a film that is provocative, daring and massively important.