Angels in America

Synopsis:

God has abandoned Heaven. It’s 1985: the Reagans are in the White House and Death swings the scythe of AIDS. In Manhattan, Prior Walter tells Louis, his lover of four years, he’s ill; Louis bolts. As disease and loneliness ravage Prior, guilt invades Louis. Joe Pitt, an attorney who is Mormon and Republican, is pushed by right-wing fixer Roy Cohn toward a job at the Justice Department. Pitt and Cohn are in the closet: Pitt out of shame and religious turmoil, Cohn to preserve his power and access. Pitt’s wife Harper is strung out on Valium, aching to escape a sexless marriage. An angel invites Prior to be a prophet in death. Pitt’s mother and Belize, a close friend, help Prior choose.

Quick Thoughts:

“Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes” is an award-winning play by Tony Kushner, with both Part I and Part II taking the Tony Award for Best Play and Part I winning the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. With an complex intertwined story told via an ensemble cast, the play poetically captures the political and social atmosphere of AIDS and Homosexuality in America during the 1980’s. This 2003 HBO TV Mini-Series adaptation takes the play to an entirely new playing field with a powerful cast! With a screenplay adapted by Kushner himself and directed by Mike Nichols, this queer fantasy film is quite an endeavour to watch all six hours – but it’s worth it! Visually stunning and with a beautiful score, it’s captivating even when the script waxes a bit too philosophical. If you somehow have missed watching this epic queer fantasy, find yourself a copy today. “Angels In America” is among the great queer classics that every LGBTQ person should watch at least once in their lifetime!