Defending Our Lives (1994) User Reviews

an excellent examination of the experience of the Domestic Violence Victim

[hildahldewey · 27 January 2009]

Defending Our Lives is a profoundly disturbing and insightful look at what it is like to be the victim of on-going, and savage domestic violence. The women who are interviewed have all been the targets of intimate partner violence in relationships that started out as happy and normal. As the film progresses we understand how each woman became vulnerable to the abuser and why her efforts to extricate herself from the situation were unsuccessful. Eventually the viewer realizes that all of these women, any of whom could be your next door neighbor or church choir director, are in prison for killing their abusers. Watch this film with a non-judgemental attitude. Any one of these women could be your sister, your best friend or you.

still the best film on domestic violence

[margaret-210 · 10/10 · 9 March 2018]

The magnitude and severity of domestic violence is revealed in an emotionally powerful way.

Academy Award Winner!

[staceykabat-88145 · 10/10 · 15 March 2018]

Ground breaking film exposing the severity of domestic violence in the United States! Unfortunately still just as poignant today as when it won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Short. Sarah Buel and the women who fight for their lives, do an incredible job of illustrating the barriers that keep battered women trapped. Their stories are riveting!