After years of struggle, homosexuality has become socially acceptable, rather than viewed as mentally ill or heretics. However, the society is far from being as tolerant as people expect. The deliberate smearing of the media, the deliberate ignoring of the government, and the more or less colored vision of heterosexuality still hang over them - the homosexual group has become the "other" of society and is discriminated against. .
Because of this, they use a high-profile rebellious way to interpret the value of their own existence. "Millions of men have singled out promiscuity as their principal political agenda. They think sex is all they have." The film opens with 6 minutes and 50 seconds to annotate the weight of this line. The shocking picture makes the audience Can clearly appreciate how crazy sex life was in the gay community at that time. Immediately afterwards, the hero Ned saw the headline in the newspaper on the return cruise: "Rare cancer is diagnosed in 41 homosexuals". The screen goes black and the title "The normal heart" appears in the center of the screen. The strong contrasts are so abrupt at the beginning of the film - the contrast between homosexuality and society, the contrast between sexual liberation and AIDS, the contrast between a doomed fate and a normal heart - foreshadowing the film's future contradictions.
Born in the 1940s, Ned was a student at Yale and felt inferior because of his homosexuality after an unfortunate family experience. The incomprehensible loneliness and the father who died in silence became the stones forcing him to forge ahead, weighing heavily on his heart. Ned was one of the founders of the Gay Health Crisis Group and always had the most radical voice at the time. His way of fighting is very aggressive, targeting the "heterosexual society", "the government that murders gays", the "mayor in hiding", and even his brother who can't treat him as a normal person; his way of inspiring his teammates is also unique. , Angrily criticizing and motivating often make his teammates can not stand his tyranny. Radical, he also has a conservative side: he never engages in "disorderly" activities, and he lashes out at such behavior in his writings. He hated cowardice, hated silence, and sought fierce confrontation. No abdominal muscles, middle-aged and fat, but he is the most fearless warrior on this battlefield without gunpowder smoke.
When Felix said to Ned: "Men do not naturally not love. They learn not to.", Ned's lonely eyes with a hint of despair from the beginning to the 30th point were shaken. Felix was "typical" gay at the time. Under the pressure of society, he has a decent job, once had a same-sex partner but was abandoned, was married and had a son, and was not out of the closet. His wife refused to let him see her children, and he couldn't resist out of shame and cowardice. Ned's charisma makes Felix relieved, and when the two fall in love and cannot extricate themselves, Felix is diagnosed with AIDS.
Ned chose to fight as always, he did not give up dealing with the government, nor did he give up trying various treatments on Felix. He would calm down when his teammates gave up, and break down when Felix gave up. Love became his armor in battle, but it was also the weakest underbelly he dared not touch. In the end, Ned was kicked out of the gay organization and lost his beloved Felix at the same time. He appeared alone at Yale's "Same-Sex Week" event, with tears in his eyes as he watched same-sex couples dance on the dance floor.
As chairman of the Gay Health Crisis Group, Bruce, unlike Ned, is conservative. He condemned Ned's drastic words and deeds, arguing that such actions would only be counterproductive and would harm his own people. In Ned's eyes, Bruce is just a "coward". But no one could really understand the pain in Bruce's heart. He hates but fears a society that rejects homosexuality, so he refuses to come out. AIDS took away his three lovers, but he was helpless and could do nothing but spend $3,000 to buy his lover's ashes; Ned's "coward" angered him precisely because he was powerless to himself of hatred. The film gives him a sloppy ending at the last moment - Tommy puts away Bruce's business card, which means that he too died alone of AIDS.
Emma is the only woman featured prominently in the film. She was the first female doctor who paid attention to AIDS and worked hard to help the gay community, and she also suggested that Ned set up an organization to carry out social activities and control sexual behavior. At first, even gays ignored her, but she never stopped fighting—against her own destiny, or the fate of others. Because of polio, Emma uses a wheelchair throughout the film. However, she often gave me the illusion that she was the tallest person in the whole film. How many people are willing to fight for the fate of others?
On the surface, the film tries to reflect the lives of these people who are persecuted by AIDS through various details, but in fact it is still telling that the indifferent vision of society is the real deadly virus and the source of this sad story. Tommy said in mourning: "I keep screaming inside, why are they letting us die? Why is no one help us? And here is the truth, here is the answer, they just don't like us."
Fortunately, the striving forward never gives up. It is gratifying that, after many years, AIDS has become a topic of the world. Although there is no complete cure, the medical level has been able to effectively control the virus. The prevention and treatment of AIDS has also become a public welfare undertaking, and every patient can receive free drugs and be treated more justly. On the other hand, gay marriage is legally guaranteed in many countries, and today's society gives homosexuals more understanding and tolerance. Ned put his arms around Felix and said on the dance floor, "Imagine if we had this when we were young. No fear, no shame." It's no longer just an ideal.
The elimination of prejudice is a long, thorny road, and all we need is a sense of commonality — where equality takes root.
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