‘Extremis’ Review

When I started to watch the short documentary, the impact of the story hit me right away. I had to pause the video a couple of times to debrief because topics like these always get to me. The documentary did the storytelling very well and nothing felt out of place. I felt like almost part of the family because the close-up shots made it feel like I was in the room with them, which affected me the most. The medical ethics behind it was challenging because one doesn’t know when the right time is to take someone off of a breathing machine. The journalism ethics, however, I think, were followed well enough. I’m glad that this particular film didn’t film the passing of the patients because I know it’s been done in other videos. Overall, one of the moments that most stuck with me was the discussions that the doctors and staff had with each other and showing how it’s emotionally affecting them too. It makes me have more respect than what I already had for them because they often have to face situations like these. It made me think that sometimes the quality of life outweighs the quantity of life.