Brett Adkins

One of the first motion pictures to address the devastating impact of HIV/Aids in an era of fear, uncertainty and absence of firm leadership due to stigmatization, all played out within the confines of a typical, loving and seemingly untouched suburban American home. The outstanding ensemble performances of Gena Rowlands, Aidan Quinn, Ben Gazzara and Sylvia Sidney, among others, elevate this 1985 study to a level that, at the time, would have made for uncomfortable but wholly necessary, viewing in any household living under the delusion they could remain unaffected for very long. Simply made, powerfully portrayed and, above all, deeply thought-provoking.