Angels in America (2003)
Fans of The Normal Heart, The Dallas Buyers Club, and Philadelphia, go out and rent the extremely heavy miniseries Angels in America. Taking place in the heart of the 1980s and the AIDS epidemic, separate characters are interwoven, connected by hope, loss, love, and death. A host of remarkable actors band together to tell Tony Kuchner’s story. I really can’t stress enough how heavy it is, but if you’ve seen all three of the aforementioned films, you can rest assured that this is heavier than all three combined.
As the story starts, Justin Kirk tells his lover Ben Shenkman that he has AIDS. Ben leaves him and the two deal with the news separately and differently. In a seemingly unrelated storyline, Patrick Wilson is a closet homosexual, and his wife Mary-Louise Parker uses drugs to cope with her problematic marriage. Al Pacino joins the story, a high-profile conservative in government, and he, too, is a closet homosexual. As you might expect, Justin isn’t the only one who contracts AIDS, and everyone ends up having to face the tragic illness either directly or because it affected a friend or family member.
Some actors, like Meryl Streep, Justin Kirk, Emma Thompson, and Jeffrey Wright, play multiple parts, and the makeup transforms them so that sometimes they’re unrecognizable. Obviously the casting choices are symbolic, showing that people wear different faces and have different sides to them, and that some souls visit multiple bodies. Much of this film is symbolic, and the philosophical messages brought up within the seven episodes are thought-provoking and emotional. If you’re not watching it because you’re passionate about the AIDS tragedy, you’re probably watching it for the cast, and no one will disappoint you. These are strong actors and actresses who pour their entire hearts into their characters. You won’t come away from this thinking anyone in this miniseries didn’t try hard enough or didn’t give a powerful performance. It’s no wonder Angels in America swept the Golden Globes, taking home Best Miniseries, Best Actor for Al Pacino, Best Actress for Meryl Streep, Best Supporting Actress for Mary-Louise Parker, as well as nominations for Ben Shenkman and Patrick Wilson. At the Emmys, it won Best Miniseries, Makeup, Directing, Art Direction, Casting, Sound Mixing, Writing, and acting awards for Al Pacino, Meryl Streep, Jeffrey Wright, and Mary-Louise Parker.
Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to adult and upsetting content, I wouldn’t let my kids watch it.
More Al Pacino movies here!
More Meryl Streep movies here!
As the story starts, Justin Kirk tells his lover Ben Shenkman that he has AIDS. Ben leaves him and the two deal with the news separately and differently. In a seemingly unrelated storyline, Patrick Wilson is a closet homosexual, and his wife Mary-Louise Parker uses drugs to cope with her problematic marriage. Al Pacino joins the story, a high-profile conservative in government, and he, too, is a closet homosexual. As you might expect, Justin isn’t the only one who contracts AIDS, and everyone ends up having to face the tragic illness either directly or because it affected a friend or family member.
Some actors, like Meryl Streep, Justin Kirk, Emma Thompson, and Jeffrey Wright, play multiple parts, and the makeup transforms them so that sometimes they’re unrecognizable. Obviously the casting choices are symbolic, showing that people wear different faces and have different sides to them, and that some souls visit multiple bodies. Much of this film is symbolic, and the philosophical messages brought up within the seven episodes are thought-provoking and emotional. If you’re not watching it because you’re passionate about the AIDS tragedy, you’re probably watching it for the cast, and no one will disappoint you. These are strong actors and actresses who pour their entire hearts into their characters. You won’t come away from this thinking anyone in this miniseries didn’t try hard enough or didn’t give a powerful performance. It’s no wonder Angels in America swept the Golden Globes, taking home Best Miniseries, Best Actor for Al Pacino, Best Actress for Meryl Streep, Best Supporting Actress for Mary-Louise Parker, as well as nominations for Ben Shenkman and Patrick Wilson. At the Emmys, it won Best Miniseries, Makeup, Directing, Art Direction, Casting, Sound Mixing, Writing, and acting awards for Al Pacino, Meryl Streep, Jeffrey Wright, and Mary-Louise Parker.
Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to adult and upsetting content, I wouldn’t let my kids watch it.
More Al Pacino movies here!
More Meryl Streep movies here!