Attacking the Devil

"Attacking the Devil: Harold Evans and the Last Nazi War Crime"

This documentary is about the children who were born to women who took the Thalidomide drug in the 1950s and 1960s.

The film shows the beginning of women being prescribed Thalidomide for morning sickness in pregnancy. The drug took away all nausea, and left the mothers feeling euphoric. However, when their babies were born, there were countless birth defects in the children exposed to the drug.

Featured in the film is Harold Evans, a journalist who fought to expose the truth about Thalidomide, and to bring about a monetary settlement for the families.

One of the themes in this documentary is the responsibility of news agencies and journalists. Do journalists entertain their readers? Do they keep things light, full of lifestyle pieces? Or do they instead investigate injustices, educate their readers, and expose the truth?

The film investigates the drug Thalidomide, the pharmaceutical company that created and produced the drug, as well as the scientists behind the drug.

Watching the documentary reminded me of the feature film “Spotlight”, which is a feature film about a team of journalists investigating and exposing the Catholic Church sex scandal in Boston, Massachusetts.

The work of Harold Evans and his journalistic team brought about actual change in the world for the Thalidomide families. The film is a testament to them, and the values and ethics of journalism itself. Truth and freedom of the press must be upheld, even in the darkest of times.

4 stars, now streaming on Netflix