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A Billion Lives

Name: A Billion Lives
Director: Aaron Biebert
Released: 2016
Duration: 94 min

Representation Score

4.7/10

Fair

2016

Director

Aaron Biebert

Runtime

94 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

A Billion Lives is a global documentary that emphasizes systemic critique over demographic diversity. Its strength lies in its international scope, using interviews across four continents to challenge Western-centric health narratives. While the film effectively critiques institutional power and capitalist influence on healthcare, it falls short in representing LGBTQ+ identities, female voices, and the experiences of disabled individuals. The diversity in its cultural perspective does not extend to individual identities.

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Category Breakdown

Does A Billion Lives have LGBTQ+ representation?

Minimal

The film does not include any LGBTQ+ characters or narratives. The focus is solely on global health policy and medical technology.

How does A Billion Lives portray gender?

Limited

The documentary centers on professional and scientific fields that have traditionally been male-dominated. It does not challenge gender hierarchies or give significant roles to female voices.

How racially and ethnically diverse is A Billion Lives?

Fair

The film achieves meaningful representation by covering four continents and diverse geographic and socioeconomic contexts. It avoids a purely Western-centric viewpoint.

How does A Billion Lives represent religion and culture?

Excellent

The narrative criticizes traditional Western institutions and pharmaceutical industries, portraying regulatory bodies as obstacles to innovation and personal freedom.

Does A Billion Lives include disability representation?

Fair

The film discusses biological factors related to addiction and premature death but does not focus on the lived experiences of disabled individuals. It views disability as a systemic issue in addressing physiological needs.

Present on Screen

The global scope provides meaningful representation by interviewing subjects across four continents.
The film successfully avoids a purely Western-centric viewpoint through its diverse geographic focus.
It offers a powerful cultural critique of Western institutional power and capitalist influence on healthcare.

Limited or Absent

The film lacks representation of LGBTQ+ characters or non-assuming gender matches what was assigned at birth identities.
There is a lack of significant roles given to female voices within the scientific and regulatory debates.
The documentary does not center the lived experiences of individuals with disabilities or neurodivergence.

Official Synopsis

In 20 years’ time, there will be nearly 1.6 billion smokers around the world. Approximately 70% of smokers want to quit. The United Nations’ World Health Organisation expects a billion people will die prematurely from smoking this century. The products their doctors recommend are rarely effective and many are trapped. A new vapour technology was invented to give smokers a successful way to quit. But it was quickly demonised, and even banned in many countries. A perfect storm is brewing between smokers trying to quit, government regulators, and health charities funded by the powerful pharmaceutical industry. Director Aaron Biebert travelled across four continents interviewing doctors, scientists, and others working to save a billion lives. What he found was profound government failure, widespread corruption in the public health community and powerful subversion by big business.

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