This documentary directed by Vaishali Sinha begins at a health expo in the convention capital of the United States, Las Vegas, where contraception is a vital topic.
“Do you use birth control?” the director asks a male attendee at the convention. He says, “I don’t, but my wife does.”
In another scene, the investor L.R. Fox walks the carpeted floor and chats with a vendor selling plastic devices that purport to help with male impotence issues. Fox, in turn, makes an impression by telling the attendees he encounters that he’s selling “male birth control.”
The documentary points out that until recently, the two available methods of birth control for men were the condom and the vasectomy. (The condom dates back to the 17th century, the vasectomy to the 19th.) Clearly, progress has been lagging.
The market debut of the birth control pill for women over half a century ago gave rise to the practice of putting women in charge of contraception by default. As implied by the movie’s title, there’s another way: An injection that Fox is promoting at the conference can block sperm from entering ejaculate and lasts for 10 years. It’s known as R.I.S.U.G. (Reversible Inhibition of Sperm Under Guidance).
The shot was developed by the Indian biomedical engineer Sujoy Guha, who began working on it in the 1970s. In a 2018 trial, it was 99 percent successful, with no major side effects. Guha recalls a newspaper referring to him as a “mad scientist” for his efforts. In the United States, his breakthrough was met with intense skepticism. Male insecurity has also been an issue. And there’s another snag: So far, drug companies haven’t shown interest.
Give it a Shot Not rated. Running time: 1 hour 32 minutes. In theaters.
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