There is one reason for the uproar and controversy over the release of Unplanned, which will show on 1,000 screens on Friday, March 29.

Unplanned is the definitive movie on abortion that has sparked more pre-release controversy than any film in awhile. The explanation is not complicated. The reason for all the drama and speculation is not because of the R rating. It’s not because it exposes Planned Parenthood and how they operate. And it’s not because we currently have governors, senators and presidential candidates casually supporting infanticide (although the timing for such a movie couldn’t be more perfect).

The uproar is for the person who inspired the movie but will never be able to see it: the 13-week-old baby boy who was aborted right before the eyes of Planned Parenthood director Abby Johnson on September 26, 2009. He changed her heart. He is the reason this movie exists. And by portraying his short life, this film validates that this baby had a life.

The scene is short but powerful. To create the abortion, the filmmakers, Chuck Konzelman and Cary Solomon of God’s Not Dead, took actual ultrasound footage of a 13-week-old baby boy, like the one Abby witnessed. Then, using CGI technology, they created the abortion. It is powerful--and something the viewer needs to see and will never forget.

And you should recognize his short life by buying a ticket this weekend. He represents not only himself, but all aborted babies who have no voice and are hardly ever known or seen.

I knew Abby the entire time she worked at Planned Parenthood. She was a very hard-working person who defended “choice” better than anyone else and truly thought she was helping women. Then, she came face-to-face with the baby boy on the ultrasound. He humanized all unborn children for her because he fought. He was alive. He didn’t care whether we thought he could feel pain or whether he should get to be born or who his parents were. He just fought for his life right before Abby’s eyes.

It was a fight he had no chance of winning, and, as a result, he changed the heart of an abortion facility director. Look at his impact. Abby has helped 500 abortion workers leave the industry. How many babies has Abby Johnson saved from abortion as a result? How many babies are alive because of that baby boy’s short life?

40 Days for Life has helped 186 abortion workers leave their job; Abby was the 26th. She managed the Planned Parenthood where 40 Days for Life began; it was right next door to my office where we offered free pregnancy tests and alternatives to abortion. This peaceful prayer campaign has now gone to 816 cities in 56 countries. Abby’s story is unique because of Joseph--because she witnessed his abortion. 

There are many good reasons to see Unplanned this weekend. Yes, it’s is the beautiful story of Abby Johnson--her courage, her wonderful family, and her willingness to put her life out there like no former abortion worker ever has. The movie is also accurate and the best education on abortion of any film. A good (but not great) reason to see Unplanned is to stick it to Hollywood and help other movies like this get made.

But the real reason you should see this--and why Planned Parenthood does NOT want you to see it--is because of that 13-week-old baby boy. He had no voice and now he has a movie.

Honor his short life. Pay homage to those who have gone through the same barbaric death as he did, a death that Hollywood rated R, but a death that will not be forgotten. Abby has been his voice, and you can be one too by commemorating him, his movie, and his life.