Synopsis
A story of two coalitions – ACT UP and TAG (Treatment Action Group) – whose activism and innovation turned AIDS from a death sentence into a manageable condition. Despite having no scientific training, these self-made activists infiltrated the pharmaceutical industry and helped identify promising new drugs, moving them from experimental trials to patients in record time.
Your Movie Library
Cast
- Larry KramerHimself
- Anthony FauciHimself
Recommendations
- 100
Time Out
The true value of the film is universal: These kids study the knotty viral science, pressure doctors into taking daring, inventive steps and make their cause a global emblem. - 100
The Playlist
One of the best documentaries, and best films, of the year, it is required viewing for anyone with a desire for making their own world a better place, inspiring you to act up and fight back. - 95
NPR
ACT UP soldiers on today, as it must, given the lack of official attention to the resurgence of HIV among young American men in metropolitan areas. - 90
Variety
A concise overview's clarity and an epic narrative shape, with a happy ending to boot. - 90
Village Voice
Millions of lives have been saved - and extended - as the result of a tireless cadre of advocates who, as Eigo states, "put their bodies on the line." - 90
Wall Street Journal
What's so remarkable about their decadeslong campaign, though, is how desperation led to inspiration - to the inspired notion that they, as nonscientists, could still take their fate in their own hands. - 90
Los Angeles Times
The latest in a recent spate of AIDS-themed documentaries, How to Survive a Plague is an exceptional portrait of a community in crisis and the focused fury of its response. - 88
Slant Magazine
Presents a cast of characters who must continue fighting, for what's at stake is the very real, very imminent threat of their own deaths.
