Saving Edwards
Zachraňte Edwardse
Dagmar Smržová / Czech Republic / 2010 / 72 min.
Šárka and Marcel Sladkowsky have decided after several years of marriage to have a child. However, during the pregnancy the doctors detect Edwards Syndrome and recommend that Šárka immediately undergo an abortion. Edwards Syndrome is a genetic disorder that causes physical and mental handicap. Half of foetuses diagnosed with the syndrome die before birth, while half the babies born with it do not live longer than a few months. In most cases parents decide to abort. Šárka and Marcel, however, choose to try to have the child - a decision met with incomprehension by their parents, friends and doctors. When Juliána is born the couple have to come to terms with the worry that every day could be her last. This film shows how society reacts to those who choose to go their own way. Most people cannot understand why anybody would devote themselves to taking care of a child who even in the pre-natal stage is extremely sick. Why have Šárka and Marcel deliberately chosen such an arduous path? What can we learn from their decision?