the witness

The Singapore French Film Festival was like a trip down Victor Hugo memory lane. I went to catch The Witness a movie that touches upon the taboo themes of gay and Aids. The movie managed to address both themes tastefully without showing any discrimination against gays. Set in 1984, Aids was still a relatively unknown disease then. The show documented the advent of the disease and how it claimed its first victims. Within a year, it claimed thousands of lives in a slow painful way. Once that happened, the salvos of war was sounded and medical world reacted. The roles of the movie include the Aids victim, his gay lover, the family members of the victim and a doctor; thus addressing the multi facet issue completely. The movie focused on their lives of people and how they reacted to the disease. In a gay centered movie, the women in the movie (the brave sister of the victim and the peculiar writer who wants to tell the victim's story to the whole world) turned out to become the unlikely heroines. Finally, the movie is so typically french. Francophiles should go catch it. For those who are not familiar with french style of movie directing, I can tell you that it is an acquired taste for me. Rated R21 for explicit contents. Do not catch it if you cant already stand brokeback mountain.

Him 1: "Now, isn't it better to touch my leg here."
Him 2: "hmmm.."