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As a grandfather of two delightful children born as a result of my daughter's IVF treatment I found this to be a fascinating and moving film to watch. The lead actors all gave excellent performances and the story was well told. I well remember the publicity surrounding Louise's birth as my son was born a few months later. Other reviewers have pointed out some inaccuracies in the story but not knowing those didn't detract from the enjoyment of the film. The perseverance and dedication of Patrick Steptoe, Bob Edwards and Jean Purdy to develop the techniques required to succeed was well portrayed as well as the difficulties they faced with opposition from the church and medical establishment together with the sensational reporting of the tabloid press.

Wow, not perfect film as the dialogue does go a bit awry in places especially in the middle of the film but for me being a father of 1 child and the difficulty in having her touched a nerve. Myself it was indeed tears of JOY at the end of the film as this story is based on true events of 3 pioneers who over the decades have been overlooked especially Jean Purdy. Joy not only tells the story of IVF but also recognises the contribution that Jean made to bringing couples much wanted children whereas this would not be possible otherwise and the treatment of women and their importance in society too including the brave women at the start who went through the program before the first successful pregnancy. Joy also highlights the fact that society at the time were very backward about childless couples and now that attitudes have changed since this included the church and the press. I don't think i could watch it again not that it is a bad film it is not it is brilliant but it was too emotional for me to watch it again, but to the film makers thankyou for doing so.

Joy is the story of the development of IVF, and specifically the role of Jean Purdy in that world-changing process - a woman whose contribution to the research and treatment was too often written out of history. That a woman's contribution should be written out of this, of all stories is of course a deeply ironic injustice; and the film is seeking to do for this injustice what Hidden Figures did for a similar injustice in the history of the American space programme. Thomasin McKenzie is excellent - as she usually is - in the lead role, and Bill Nighy is well used as one of the surgeons. The story is, of course, inspiring and uplifting, but I can't help but feel that such a remarkable and important story deserves a better film. It's fine as it is - and it does improve as it goes on. But the script in particular does too much exposition, especially in the early stages; some of that may be felt to be necessary in a story that science plays such a role in. But the result is that it takes too much of its running time to really feel emotionally engaging. More character depth, a little more nuance in some of the issues the story raises would have led to something that felt even more worthy of the remarkable raw historical material. The process is interesting - but this is fundamentally a story about people. And whilst it's hard not to be moved by the end of the film, I can't help but wish for a production that was more emotionally engaging throughout.

Netflix definitely not taking any risks with this one, but I think for this subject that isn't necessarily a bad thing. The first act had me a bit worried as it kind of started a bit too cheesy where it was bordering on something like that stupid hot cheetos movie. Fortunately by the second act some real conflict and interesting character/plot development did arise in a moderately interesting way. I will admit they got me with the sentimental true-story conclusion. Sometimes it's nice to just watch something light and heartwarming, and I think with the actually interesting subject matter this is a good choice for that kind of vibe.

Thomasin Mckenzie is wonderful as this character and I am soooo glad they followed the female scientist as the main character in this story, I think that was the only way to make this work. Jean Purdy seems she was criminally overlooked as many of the brilliant women of her time, but it inspires some hope to know that her male collaborators were fierce advocators for her recognition as a crucial scientist in this huge accomplishment.

It's good, watch it for a date night or something.

Joy is a straight down the middle rendition of a life changing breakthrough in science and the struggles to achieve it when so many people are against its existence. It's a classic example of a true story that changed everything being turned into a film as formulaic as possible. Thanks to a very charming cast and the emotional heft that just comes with telling this fact based story competently it remains a really good watch.

The three leads are all great. Thomasin McKenzie gets the most to work as this is her film from her perspective. The struggles she has come from every angle and her perseverance only makes it more investing. James Norton brings a lot of energy as someone who has a real desire to make the world a better place which makes it heartbreaking to see him feel defeated. Bill Nighy is in fine form thanks to another one of his lovely genial roles he's becoming increasingly popular with.

Ben Taylor's direction brings a nice amount of playfulness to the visuals early on before quickly devolving into something a lot less noticeable in an inoffensive fashion. It starts off with an unexpected Richard Curtis feel that soon disappears but it maintains a sturdy and well made quality throughout. The soundtrack contains a few well implemented songs that enhance the generally warm nature of the film and match the perfectly chosen title.

The film follows the journey of the three people - visionary scientist Robert Edwards, innovative surgeon Patrick Steptoe, and pioneering nurse Jean Purdy - who teamed up to make the procedure a reality, with special focus placed on the often overlooked role Purdy played in the breakthrough. As someone who is currently 34 weeks pregnant through IVF after years of infertility, I found this film deeply moving and beautifully documented. It gave me a renewed appreciation for the people who have made IVF possible. While my personal experience might make me a bit biased towards this film, I'm confident this film will resonate with anyone who has undergone infertility treatments. Highly recommend!

A current Netflix original movie about the movement to get IVF (in vitro fertilization) across the finish line during the 70's in Blighty. A pair of scientists, James Norton & Thomasin McKenzie, team up w/a doctor, Oscar nominee Bill Nighy, to begin the process of bringing heretofore barren women pregnant using their new method but due to the tenor of the time (the religious right found the act sacrilegious while the medical establishment felt if a woman couldn't conceive, it was her lot in life) presents more challenges than the actual breakthrough they'd struggle to achieve over the course of a decade. McKenzie herself, very standoffish w/her incoming test subjects & dealing w/her own mother's vociferous opposition to her work, soon starts to sympathize w/her subjects' plight opening herself to them while her comrades endure the trials of Job to get some success. A fairly standard take on a tumultuous topic is buoyed by the 3 leads performances which give a voice & face to a procedure which is pretty commonplace nowadays (hell a friend of mine had it done!) making us second guess the ease in certain medicial things we take for granted.

Loved every second of it, pacing was perfect. Narrative moved so smoothly filled with emotion and human beauty. In a world filled with harm and brutality, stories like these renews my faith in humanity and its purity to make good. It shows how inventions that people take for granted had been so unattainable so far away, until someone somewhere had the patience to make it true and change history for millions of people.

If you love appreciation of hard work, of virtue, of scientific development that changed the world as we know. This is a must watch that truly deserve your time and. Couldn't recommend it enough.

What a beautiful film. In times like these, where it feels like women's choices are taking a step backwards, this movie is so important.

Even if you aren't familiar with the science of IVF, this is such an incredible story of adversity. The scientists who risked everything. The brave women who paved the way for the future. It was a very emotional.

Being an IVF patient myself, I felt an immense sense of gratitude for everyone involved and it was fascinating to see how it all began.

Thank you so much to the filmmakers and actors who gave world-class performances. I can't fault the movie at all. It's a must-watch.

I can't believe fifty years ago people were against babies being born. We've clearly come very far both in terms of medical advancements and critical thinking and we still have a long way to go, but fifty years seems not that long ago.

Also, I can't believe Jean's mom. Hardline believers are mystifying for sure. And I wonder how much of Jean's life in this movie is fiction for the sake of the movie. Anyway, it's such a shame she died so young, I'm sure there was so much more she could have accomplished.

I didn't find this boring at all. I know most people find it lacking, but I didn't. It's a good story. It's amusing again that the actors look nothing like the actual people they're portraying, and you can see where I'm going with this. But I'm part of the audience that likes to see attractive and well put together people on screen, so I'd be a hypocrite to complain, right? Also, at this point Bill Nighy makes any movie better just by sitting there.

Sedate but uplifting Brit drama "Joy" is the true tale of how in the 1970s doctors Bob Edwards (James Norton) & Patrick Steptoe (Bill Nighy) with nurses Jean Purdy (Thomasin McKenzie) & Muriel Harris (Tanya Moodie) overcame significant societal resistance to master the science of IVF, resulting in 1978 in the world's first 'test tube baby' (of millions). The style & tone adopted by the experienced duo of director Ben Taylor & writer Jack Thorne is gentle, but it ultimately delivers strongly, thanks largely to the solid performances throughout (inc support from Joanna Scanlan, Simon Paisley-Day, & Nicholas Rowe). It's a good, noble, engaging, and interesting movie.

Its hard to explain how much I love this film, except it is just so incredibly personal. I was born in the same hospital in Oldham in 1953, and had my Appendix out when I was 8. Even Patrick Steptoe, played brilliantly by Bill Nighy in Cambridge says the Hospital in Oldham is better than here.

This film is mostly about a Woman, who wants to have a Baby - and eventually does, through new medical techniques developed mostly in Cambridge and Oldham - and it worked for the first time.

Can you imagine the Joy in all of that, not just for The Mother, and The Scientists who did it, but also the actors making this film, and me from Oldham watching it.

Joy is an inspiring and emotional drama that tells a story of perseverance and hope. While it may not reinvent the wheel, it offers a satisfying experience with heartfelt moments and strong performances.

The lead actress brings depth and relatability to her role, portraying a character who fights through life's challenges to find her own sense of purpose. Her performance is complemented by a solid supporting cast that adds warmth and complexity to the story.

The film is visually straightforward, focusing more on the characters and their emotional journeys than on flashy cinematography. The direction is competent, keeping the narrative engaging even when it dips into predictable territory.

The story itself feels familiar, with themes and plot points that have been explored in other films. However, its sincerity and emotional core make it an enjoyable watch for those who love uplifting dramas.

Overall, Joy is a good film that delivers what it promises: a moving story about overcoming adversity. It may not surprise you, but it will likely leave you with a smile.

This film depicts the amazing story of how ivf was born. It is a reminder that it wasn't too long ago the first ivf story was successful. This is not a thing of the past Infact this is a thing of many years to come and I hope that the fact now more and more people need fertility treatment means they watch this movie.

As an IVF mother this was a tear jerker and the characters were played by the most perfect actors for the role.

Thank you Netflix for bringing the "joy" of IVF to light and reminding us how science has helped many women and men around the world become parents. This is a movie you can watch over and over and not get bored.

It's 1968 Cambridge. Jean Purdy (Thomasin McKenzie) gets hired by biologist Bob Edwards (James Norton) for his IVF experiments. They recruit innovative obstretic surgeon Patrick Steptoe (Bill Nighy). Together, they would face hurdles from all sides and a long meandering ten years journey to create the first test tube baby.

This is a long winding road. At times, the movie feels meandering and I'm not sure if they picked the right point of view. I thought maybe one of the patients should be the lead. Of course, the first patients wouldn't be there at the end and the first birth mother isn't there with the first group. So, it has to be Jean Purdy. I would add one additional scene, the plaque without Jean Purdy's name. That needs to be the first shot in the movie.

My mom told me to watch this movie and honestly great decision. In times like this movie felt like a warm, emotional hug.

The message this film embraces is so powerful and meaningful. And for me, it felt really personal.

I am a ivf baby and seeing how difficult and cruel it was to be involved in this project makes me so thankful for the movie.

Ultimately life is about choices and everyone should have the right to have as many as it is possible. The movie points this out amazingly.

I'm so thankful that this amazing interesting story is being told and I am so grateful for their work, sweat and dedication, I wouldn't be here if it weren't because of them.

It is pretty absurd how people are so blind and ignorant on unknown matters, yet so ready to judge and be inhuman to others, just because of their personal beliefs. Looking back and forward, people haven't really change and that's one of the biggest issues in the present world.

It is crucial to understand why this movie embraces so much of the lack of care for the woman's rights to their body nowadays.

So much opinions on what should people do to their lives. (If you're like that go get a life to complain about)

(One bitter note) Surly if the "team" was given the best of resources and support this could've helped so many more families.

So happy to be part (kinda) of such a wonderful advance and I carry this with me in the best possible ways.

Thanks Bob, Patrick, Jean and so many others for never giving up on people.

A number of people who have reviewed this film have a personal connection to the subject matter. I have to confess to having one myself. I once worked at Oldham hospital and every week I passed the plaque that commemorates Louise Brown, the first IVF baby, being born there. Since this film is only being shown at a handful of cinemas I took out a subscription to Netflix in order to be able to see it.

Would this be an interesting film for people without a personal connection? I have to say not really. One shortcoming is that it packs in a lot of different threads without properly developing any of them. It includes the right of women to exercise choice over having a family, the pain of infertility, social expectations on women to become mothers, the ethics of scientific research and how science is used, prejudice against women, fear of social change, ignorance about scientific developments, the tabloid press encouraging bigotry, religious conservatism. These threads are introduced but not followed up. Snippets of the science behind IVF are put into the characters' words but there is no explanation of why it took 10 years to produce the first IVF birth. There is no attempt to explain the savage prejudice against IVF research. Even allowing that attitudes would have been different in the 1970s, when this film is set, the prejudice is difficult to understand. The social and personal effects of infertility are not explored. This film would have been much better if it had focused on just one or two themes.

This would not matter so much if the characters were relatable. But there is a near total absence of characterisation. There is no attempt to develop any of the main characters, except that of Jean Purdy, who up to now has been left out of the history of IVF. She is presented as being dedicated to researching a cure for infertility because she was herself infertile and wanted to help other women in the same situation. But she is still not convincingly developed as a character.

The minor characters, the women who volunteered for IVF treatment, are barely introduced, as is the family of Louise Brown. A good story pays attention to its characters, what they do and why. This film does none of that. Without well rounded and relatable characters it is flat. It is not unwatchable but it is not the right approach to telling the story of IVF.

Netflix offers us a film that pays homage to a part of the history of science and humanity through the skin of three great characters such as Jean Purdy, Bob Edwards and Patrick Steptoe. In a conventional drama, but effective for the viewer.

Directed by Ben Taylor and starring Thomasin McKenzie, James Norton and Bill Nighy, who give their all to give us a respectful and warm performance, carrying on their shoulders a correct script that knows how to touch the necessary fibers to give us a drama that efficiently pays tribute to the birth of Louise Joy Brown.

The film perfectly fulfils the character and tone with which the story is presented. We have plenty of emotion, plenty of drama and plenty of hope, arguments that serve to connect correctly with the viewer and make the time full of emotions and all that taste of science and life. The great strength is deposited in its characters and in the charisma of Thomasin McKenzie who is the true star of the film with an interpretation that demonstrates her talent and all that she continues to promise as a future star.

It is a film that fulfills what it promises and will not give you more than that, it is a drama and it lives off that, it has certain novel ideas, but they are an addition more than anything for a film that at all times will be correct and will leave you with a good taste in your mouth, but nothing that will completely revolutionize you more than the emotion of being able to highlight a darker part of the history of science.

Is it worth watching?

In any case, it is a film that entertains and gives you moments. You won't have a bad time and you won't get bored either.

"Joy" is an historical drama that tells the story of Jean Purdy, Bob Edwards and Patrick Steptoe; a small team of scientists carrying out one of the most revolutionary research about reproduction. Their discovery is widely used nowadays to help countless women to have kids. Their pioneering work was very criticized by the public opinion, in fact we can see many tense moments, where these professionals were refused additional fundings, received harsh comments during interviews or straight up menaced. The movie really shows the resiliency of the protagonists, making the audience empathize with them. There is a good character development, in particular screenwriters deepen the story of Jean, by exploring the relationship with her mother that highlights the frictions between science and religion. Dialogues and interactions are realistic and engaging. Moreover, the director displayed the most important milestones of the IVF research, by keeping a good pace that kept my interest for the whole length.

The cast has some big names in it: Thomasin McKenzie ("Jojo Rabbit", "Last Night in Soho") delivered a good performance and confirmed once again to be a versatile actress. She conveyed several different emotions, keeping me invested in her. Bill Nighy ("Living") is the experienced and well liked doctor that through his experience has some sort of support function and pushes the young scientists to keep going with their work. James Norton was for me the weakest member of the main cast, as in some sequences his acting came a bit too forced, particularly when his character gets angry or frustrated. I was glad to see Tanya Moody, whom I discovered on "Silo". Here she played a side role, that however was important to move forward the story. All things considered, I believe that this film deserves a rank of 7.5 out of 10.

I remember the first test tube baby being born as she was born the same year my daughter was born.

I remember the publicity and the scare mongering in the press. It's thanks to the 3 people in the film that there are many millions of parents around the world who would otherwise be unable to have children.

We take having children for granted, but for many people it is not possible. One simply cannot imagine the heartache childlessness causes to families, particularly women, who feel totally inadequate because of it.

The film is excellent and all the acting superb! A very definite 'feel good' film

Thank goodness these brave people continued with their work despite all the negativity around their processes. Today IVF is just another treatment which hopefully, in an ideal world, everyone that needs it, can have it.