TV Review: A Body That Works

From my experience writing for BioNews, reviewing TV and film about fertility, IVF and surrogacy has become increasingly difficult. Broadly, I would argue that this is a good thing: many previous attempts have felt like public service broadcasts which, while important to discuss, meant the review's unique angle was simply that it was all 'important to discuss'. Now that the important things have been discussed, filmmakers can engage properly with the ethical, personal, and philosophical underpinnings of modern fertility practice.

This certainly makes for more engaging, or at least more stressful, television, at least in the first three episodes of 'A Body That Works', a television drama from Israel which premiered in February 2023 and was picked up by Netflix the following year. However, I found myself struggling with something: while there is plenty of drama, arguments and clashes, I never felt I could root for or against any character. Because how else would you expect somebody to act when they're involved in the surrogacy process?

'A Body That Works' follows Elie and Ido, a middle-class professional couple who, after years of inseminations, IVF and miscarriages, decide to pursue surrogacy. Here, they meet Chen, a younger single mother in dire financial straits and, despite personality clashes between Elie and Chen, they pursue the pregnancy. What follows is a series of events and developments, including Elie overstepping her boundaries regarding Chen's lifestyle, Chen's seeming disregard for the couple's wishes, Ido and Chen becoming closer, and Elie pursuing an affair with a client. This would be frustrating if I didn't feel like these decisions were wholly justified given the situation everyone is in.

Part of this is a testament to the bravery of the series' creators, especially Shira Hadad who had a son through surrogacy. 'A Body That Works' is the first film or TV show about surrogacy which, given that it includes the surrogate at all, portrays them as a real human being, as opposed to an exceedingly generous, Mary Magdalene-like figure. The viewer is under no misapprehension that Chen is motivated by anything other than the money, which she intends to use to find an apartment for herself and her son. And while she does not harm the baby, she is remarkably nonchalant and resistant to Elie's increasing control over her diet, medications and lifestyle. And why shouldn't she be? Chen may be carrying their baby, but Elie and Ido have not purchased her and have no right to impose on her independence.

On the contrary, what exactly is it that Elie and Ido are spending all of their money on? And if what Chen is providing is effectively a service, why shouldn't Elie dictate the circumstances under which that service is conducted? Personally, I struggled to warm to Elie as a character, even if her more 'coercive' behaviour is initially guileless. She is highly-strung and has the sense of humour of a melting ice cube, although the years of failed pregnancies may also have been a contributing factor.

Elie also embodies the class divide intrinsic to surrogacy, and 'A Body That Works' is the first time I have seen this tackled head-on. Even as a lawyer and book editor respectively, Ido and Elie are investing a significant proportion of their life savings in surrogacy, making it clear exactly for whom this path is available, and who is required for this path to be available at all. This includes investment in Chen herself, who they assist in finding an apartment and in her custody battle over her son, as well as buying her food and supplements, much to her chagrin. Compounded by Chen's staunch independence, she also resists their aid by arguing that they are doing this for the baby, and not for her. This is probably true, but is it necessarily problematic?

The show is driven by these fraught and dynamic personal relationships which, for me, highlight a slightly more sinister theme present across previous IVF and surrogacy media: the equivalence of emotional compatibility with biological compatibility. This is indicated by Chen and Ido's burgeoning relationship, the strains between Elie and Ido throughout the pregnancy, and Elie pursuing an affair while feeling as if the pregnancy is occurring without her. While this makes for engaging television, I find the inferred messages somewhat concerning. But again, does this all make sense given the strains of the surrogacy process?

While I don't want to reiterate the recurring line that shows are good because they raise issues that are 'important to discuss', 'A Body That Works' feels like it does this with much more depth, which goes to its credit. Whether one's perception of the show is driven by its quality or by their opinions on surrogacy policies remains to be seen. Most intriguingly, however, is that in 2024 the show was renewed for a second season. This tends to happen with hit Israeli shows once they begin to receive worldwide acclaim (see the phenomenal 'Shtisel'). But a new season of a show about surrogacy happening after the pregnancy has concluded? That's curious at the very least.