AMSA film and book lovers, I would like to add to the movie/book list a few that I think are really great, albeit older (not outdated) and not particularly well known. They have the added advantage of being small, and easy to cram between studying. Social Critic Susan Sontag's essay "AIDS and Its Metaphors" is usually paired with the Related essay "Illness as a Metaphor". These two essays are filled with humane and original ideas about disease and the modern condition. Another book that I haven't actually read yet, but that has been suggested to me is "My Own Country: A Doctor's Story of a Town and Its People in the Age of AIDS" by Abraham Verghese. Another good movie that I saw a few years ago is "Longtime Companion". I couldn't remember the name and had to look it up on Amazon. Here is the review they had: The late director Norman Rene and writer Craig Lucas made a pretty fine creative team on the stage and in the movies, and this 1990 drama about the evolving impact of AIDS on gay New Yorkers is their best cinematic achievement. The ensemble story follows the lives of nine or so characters as word of the so-called "gay cancer" eventually becomes a real force, killing several of them as the years go by. The film works well on a number of levels, not least of which is the enviable closeness of the characters, the script's wit, the bittersweet experience of loss, and a celebratory attitude at the end mixing wisdom with defiance. --Tom Keogh Try and check these out, and if you already have, I would like to discuss them. I have a copy of the books to borrow, and can tell you where to get a hold of the movie. Josh ----Original Message Follows---- From: "Quy Ton" <[log in to unmask]> To: "AMSA Listserv" <[log in to unmask]> Subject: [AMSA] World AIDS Day(s): And the Band Played On / Movie series? Date: Wed, 6 Nov 2002 11:52:09 -0600 Hey, one final email for now. Celia and I were talking about some AMSA stuff last night and the book and movie, "And the Band Played On" came up during one of our many tangents. For those who don't recall, it's about how the causative agent of HIV/AIDS was discovered in the 1980s after an outbreak in the bay area and the subsequent controversy over who actually discovered it, Americans or French. For Matthew Modine fans, the movie features him as the American epidemiologist. We were thinking that we could show the movie in our the 2nd year classroom on Dec. 2. If any of you can think of any other good movies, articles or books about HIV/AIDS, perhaps we can even put together a reading and movie list, please let us know. Looking ahead, I think showing a series of movies on health and social justice issues would be a great way to continue educating ourselves and others on these important issues. One great movie that directly and effectively shows the disastrous health effects of world bank policies on a developing country is "Life and Debt" an excellent and entertaining documentary on global health policy effects on Jamaica, with interviews with very articulate farmers, factory workers and the former president about how the world bank shafted them. Please let us know if you have any other movies that would be good to show. Just a few thoughts. Now back to work. Peace out. Quy _________________________________________________________________ The new MSN 8: smart spam protection and 2 months FREE* http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail