If aging and death are seen as diseases, is there hope for a cure? A pioneering industry of trillium is betting on it, with many wealthy consumers voluntarily donating their cells, DNA or severed heads to the cause. “Immortals” examines the enterprise of immortality and the moral and ethical implications of this controversial quest.
In the sweltering, arid landscape of Arizona, a group of willing guinea pigs lie in perpetual freezing. At Alcor Life Extension Foundation, clients believe that science will one day find a cure for all mortal diseases and have the power to resurrect the dead in a brave new world. Company co-founder Linda Chamberlain offers a tour of the facility culminating in a tour of the cryogenic tank showroom. Her own husband and in-laws lived in rows of icy cylindrical graves.
In the heart of Silicon Valley, entrepreneurs continue to push the word antiaging. Not content with temporary facial fillers and rejuvenating creams, they use everything from experimental drugs and vitamins to extremely dangerous biological manipulations.
BioViva co-founder Liz Parrish was her first client. She underwent an operation to lengthen the ends of her chromosomes. These caps are essential for cell replication, which keeps us young and alive. Parrish aims for more than just aesthetics. By building an active defense against the biological aging process, she hopes to one day extend lifespan by hundreds or thousands of years.
If the medical and scientific communities are united in their efforts to cure cancer and other chronic diseases, why do they think they should waver on mortality? After all, old age is the number one cause of death. The film addresses these and other debates that have fueled opposition to the immortality movement, including issues related to overpopulation, climate change, and our planet’s dwindling resources.
Some may consider these efforts ridiculous, absurd, or downright immoral. The Immortals seem to recognize some aspects of this story that sound like science fiction, while acknowledging that they might one day become our reality.
Directed by: Tomas Kaan
