A young gay man (Adian Quinn) becomes stricken with AIDS. He now has to come out to his parents (Gena Rowlands, Ben Gazzara) AND tell them he has an incurable disease.
For its time this was extraordinary. Back in 1985 AIDS was still considered a gay mans disease and most TV shows wouldn't touch the subject. NBC should be congratulated on having the courage to greenlight this and present it (also it got HUGE ratings when it first played). The acting is exceptional--Quinn is just perfect and Rowlands is incredible as his mother. Gazzara is also good but not as good as the other two--he seems to be holding back. And it was a surprise to see John Glover playing a man dying on AIDS--he usually played villains. Also the ending didn't offer any false hope--there was no miracle cure to save this man. For a TV movie that was incredible.
The film isn't perfect. Some of the dialogue is bad (especially between Quinn and Gazzara) and Quinn's boyfriend leaves him at the beginning--only to show up again at the end. Sorry but that wouldn't have happened back then. Also today AIDS is not a death sentence. People are living and there are some treatment that are working. Still this is an exceptional movie and a definite milestone in TV history. Recommended.
For its time this was extraordinary. Back in 1985 AIDS was still considered a gay mans disease and most TV shows wouldn't touch the subject. NBC should be congratulated on having the courage to greenlight this and present it (also it got HUGE ratings when it first played). The acting is exceptional--Quinn is just perfect and Rowlands is incredible as his mother. Gazzara is also good but not as good as the other two--he seems to be holding back. And it was a surprise to see John Glover playing a man dying on AIDS--he usually played villains. Also the ending didn't offer any false hope--there was no miracle cure to save this man. For a TV movie that was incredible.
The film isn't perfect. Some of the dialogue is bad (especially between Quinn and Gazzara) and Quinn's boyfriend leaves him at the beginning--only to show up again at the end. Sorry but that wouldn't have happened back then. Also today AIDS is not a death sentence. People are living and there are some treatment that are working. Still this is an exceptional movie and a definite milestone in TV history. Recommended.