Jim Allison: Breakthrough
2019 | 90 min
Jim Allison: Breakthrough is the astounding, true story of one warm-hearted, stubborn man’s visionary quest to find a cure for cancer.
Today, Jim Allison is a name to be reckoned with throughout the scientific world — a 2018 Nobel Prize winner for discovering the immune system’s role in defeating cancer — but for decades he waged a lonely struggle against the skepticism of the medical establishment and the resistance of Big Pharma.
​
Jim Allison: Breakthrough takes us into the inspiring and dramatic world of cutting-edge medicine, and into the heart of a true American pioneer, in a film that is both emotionally compelling and deeply entertaining.
​
“Top Ten Films of 2019”
~ Ann Hornaday, Washington Post
​
“Absorbing...inspiring and heartening...go once, go twice you won’t regret it, you won’t forget it”
~ Ann Hornaday, Washington Post
​
“One of those great, emotional journeys only documentaries are capable of taking us on.”
~ Sonic-Cinema.com
​
“Haney paints a vivid portrait of Allison from boyhood to the present day, creating an empathetic hero for this true-life tale.”
~ Leonard Maltin, LeonardMaltin.com
​
“Breakthrough remains loyal to its academic source material in a way that's clear enough for any viewer to follow… [and] Haney seems to have made all the right filmmaking choices, from balancing the science and sentimental to picking his subject at the perfect time…”
~ Nathan Mattise, Ars Technica
“In a time when cynicism and skeptics run rampant, Breakthrough looks to offer a moment of comfort and hope via the story of Jim Allison.”
~ Dino-Ray Ramos, Deadline Hollywood
“In a field you’d never think of as having rock stars, Allison is a rock star of immunology. The filmmaker, Bill Haney, is a rock star among documentarians for bringing us this wonderful, hopeful film about a man and a Breakthrough achievement.”
~ Bradley Gibson, Film Threat
“Breakthrough demonstrates that the treatment is not a miracle, but the result of some wild but meticulous thinking by a true medical hero.”
~ Caryn James, The Hollywood Reporter
“Breakthrough is an engaging and entertaining film because Allison is a fascinating subject. He’s blunt and honest and colorful.”
~ Sophie Novack, Texas Observer