With the words "teen" and "activist" becoming increasingly synonymous, this historical drama is incredibly relevant and feels made to appeal to and encourage today's passionate youths. While it's never stated in the movie, the film was created as a warning that similar horrors could recur due to the many EPA regulations and labor laws rolled back under the Trump Administration. There are also disturbing scenes of a young woman's teeth and jaw falling out due to radiation poisoning. Real footage from the 1920s is used to show marches that echo contemporary issues, including demands for equal rights and to abolish the police (there's a clip of a cop swinging his baton at protestors). A subplot shows Black and White activists working together for racial unity, but the story centers on a White woman's experience.
It's an intersectionally feminist story in that it's about a range of women - low-income laborers, Harvard professors, scientists, and legal counselors - banding together to make change. The film reflects what happened in real life: Doctors were paid off to tell the girls they were suffering from syphilis, rather than radiation poisoning, to shame them into silence. When trusting 17-year-old main character Bessie ( Joey King) realizes that her sister's mysterious illness might be related to toxic materials at work, she sets out to fight a powerful system that prioritizes profits over people. It's based on shocking real events that led to government regulations to protect U.S. Parents need to know that Radium Girls is an inspiring coming-of-age drama set in the 1920s and executive-produced by Lily Tomlin.
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