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THE STRAIGHT DOPE:
Disease of the week movies often try to make a point about suffering by
bombarding
the viewer with
emotion to the point that the film no longer seems to reflect real
life.
The producers
of HBO's And the Band Played On boldly took
a different approach, exploring the AIDS crisis during its first seven
years from a
scientific, social perspective. What results is at
times thrilling, terrifying, and ultimately heartbreaking. It is
especially important now, on the twentieth anniversary of the discovery
of the AIDS virus and during a time when many experts believe that AIDS
is about
to make a catastrophic comeback, that we not
forget the journey to date.
And the Band Played On, based on Randy Shilts' tremendous journalistic account, is told mostly from the perspective of
Don
Francis
(Matthew Modine), a Centers for Disease Control scientist whose prior
work
included
stopping Ebola Fever from becoming an epidemic. The opening scenes find
Francis
in Africa dealing with the localized devastation of Ebola Fever and the
images of
death and suffering
haunt him throughout the rest of the film. He seems driven by a desire
to solve a
seemingly unsolvable problem and, even though he may be somewhat
idealized, his
earnestness is sincere. The same cannot be said for some of the other
scientists who
are waylaid by bureaucracy (Saul Rubinek's head of the CDC is
constantly stymied by red tape) and greed (Alan Alda makes a great
villain as the
world-famous Dr. Robert Gallo
whose desire to take sole credit for discovery of the virus slows the
process of trying
to cure it). The entire cast is excellent, particularly Ian McKellan as
San Fransisco
gay rights activist Bill Kraus and Lily Tomlin as the no-nonsense Dr.
Selma Dritz.
The huge cast (which also includes Richard Gere, Phil Collins, Steve
Martin,
Angelica Huston, Swoozie Kurtz,
Richard Masur, Glene Headley, and Charles Martin Smith) turns in
uniformly subtle
and excellent
work. No one showboats and the film, which is filled with science,
retains a subtle
depth because of it.
Those familiar with the development of the AIDS epidemic will find
themselves
recognizing key events, like the moment a French-Canadian man taking
part in the
first wave of interviews with possible victims of the then-unnamed
disease mentions
that he is an airline steward. Later referred to as Patient Zero, this
man was key in
understanding how AIDS spreads since doctors were able to chart the
disease's
effect on his little black book. By gaining new partners at each stop
on
his airline's
flight path Patient Zero unwittingly helped spread AIDS around the
globe.
That AIDS was initially thought to be a gay disease is critical to
understanding how it
developed. With a newly elected conservative presidency the early-80's
were a bad
time
to need federal funding for research into anything primarily affecting
the gay
community. When Francis encounters resistance from the government no
one
is
surprised (after all, it took Reagan nearly his
entire presidency to mention AIDS publicly) but when the San Francisco
gay
community practically riots at the suggestion that the bath houses be
closed down he
is at a loss. In the early years of AIDS nobody wanted to
believe the truth and the CDC and the government didn't help (The film
accuses
blood providers of continuing to allow transfusions with tainted blood
after they
knew it would cause AIDS). In the film it isn't until a baby can be
proved to have
AIDS that irrefutable evidence that everyone is at risk exists and it
is
that turning
point that helps bring the message to the public.
As far as medical dramas go And the Band Played On is top notch.
The fact
that it chronicles such an important and devastating time only helps it
resonate more.
VIDEO:
The anamorphic video looks pretty good. There is some dirt on the
print,
but not an
unacceptable amount. This is an early example of the HBO filmmaking
machine and
doesn't have quite the slickness that more recent films and shows have.
Still, it is a
well visualized
film for the subject.
AUDIO:
Dolby Digital 2.0 and 5.1 tracks are available. The film is mostly
dialog and, while
good, there isn't anything too dynamic about the sound.
EXTRAS:
Only some bios are available. Considering the subject matter this is a
shame. There
is a limitless amount of additional information that could have been
included.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
A moving testament to the frailty of mankind, And the Band Played
On has
the ability to surprise and scare. If a disease can so easily
infiltrate
our society, and if
our government can be so incompetent in dealing with it, how can we
ever
feel safe?
Gil Jawetz is a graphic designer, video director, and t-shirt designer. He lives in Brooklyn.
E-mail Gil at buskerdog@yahoo.com |
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