MovieChat Forums > Silverlake Life: The View from Here Discussion > Beautiful, powerful film

Beautiful, powerful film

posted 15 years ago by valoriez
3 replies | jump to latest

I just saw this film for the first time, on a DVD with some great extras. For anyone who was left wondering about Mark Massi, the film maker's lover, there is a epilogue shot by Elaine Mayes.

AIDS is still a scrourge all this time later, even though it no longer is a death sentence. We still need this documentary, because people love, people die, and that's what it is really about -- not the "gay life" or AIDS, but just how we humans love one another, and how we face death.

My thanks to all who participated in making this work of art, especially Peter Friedman, Tom's Joslin's student, who brought this film to the world.

I have an immediate response on my blog at
http://valoriez.blogspot.com/2009/08/film-silverlake-life-view-from-here.html

I can't believe the only discussion about this FILM is about the disease AIDS, rather than the film!

[–] 15 years ago

[deleted]

[–] dkast85 9 years ago

Well said. I saw this film for the first time a week ago. Very powerful. You said it well. It is not a film about being gay. It is a simple movie about being in love and seeing someone you love, die. And worst of all, watching them suffer. Too many gay documentaries that I have seen just make a spectacle out of the whole gay thing. It is not right imo. As the famous quote goes, "Yeah I'm gay. But that's not all I am."

DK
Thanks for Playing

[–] GraceFromSoCal 9 years ago

I realize I'm late to this party, but oh well!

Very well said, valoriez. This is one of my favorite films about the AIDS pandemic, and I own it on DVD. I saw it when it first aired, and at that time I was HEAVILY involved in the world of HIV/AIDS. (I volunteered at an AIDS clinic; I was an HIV/AIDS counselor, and I taught classes and gave HIV test results to clients.) It brought me to tears then, and still does now any time I watch it.

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http://www.CaliforniaDreamsPhotography.com