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How to Survive a Plague Play Trailer

How to Survive a Plague (2012)

tomatometer

100

Average Rating: 8.7/10
Reviews Counted: 56
Fresh: 56 | Rotten: 0

Angry, powerful, and stirring, How to Survive a Plague is a brilliantly constructed documentary about the activists who pushed for action to combat the AIDS epidemic.

100

Average Rating: 8.6/10
Critic Reviews: 27
Fresh: 27 | Rotten: 0

Angry, powerful, and stirring, How to Survive a Plague is a brilliantly constructed documentary about the activists who pushed for action to combat the AIDS epidemic.

audience

82

liked it
Average Rating: 4/5
User Ratings: 3,470

My Rating

Movie Info

How to Survive a Plague is the story of two coalitions-ACT UP and TAG (Treatment Action Group)-whose activism and innovation turned AIDS from a death sentence into a manageable condition. Despite having no scientific training, these self-made activists infiltrated the pharmaceutical industry and helped identify promising new drugs, moving them from experimental trials to patients in record time. With unfettered access to a treasure trove of never-before-seen archival footage from the 1980s and

Unrated,

Documentary, Special Interest

Feb 25, 2013

$0.1M

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All Critics (56) | Top Critics (27) | Fresh (56) | Rotten (0)

As this stirring, scrupulous doc reveals, the members of ACT UP fused the fervor of revolutionaries, the tenacity of trial lawyers, and the rage of the dispossessed to change the very shape of the epidemic.

January 7, 2013 Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
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From a terrible epidemic comes a beautiful documentary.

January 7, 2013 Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
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A raw history, often cluttered and sometimes repetitive but, when strategies fail along with immune systems, deeply affecting.

November 2, 2012 Full Review Source: Globe and Mail
Globe and Mail
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Presents a valuable template for how grassroots activism can temper societal prejudice and challenge governmental indifference in the face of a mysterious and remorseless killer.

November 1, 2012 Full Review Source: Toronto Star
Toronto Star
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A serious, moving and sometimes astonishingly well-organized documentary about the history of AIDS activism.

October 18, 2012 Full Review Source: Seattle Times
Seattle Times
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[A] powerful, messy and tremendously moving documentary ...

October 18, 2012 Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune
Minneapolis Star Tribune
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An indispensable and moving piece of filmmaking.

February 22, 2013 Full Review Source: The List
The List

[A] glorious ode to the supposition that a small group of committed people can change the world...

February 21, 2013 Full Review Source: Flick Filosopher
Flick Filosopher

Plague offers an instructive lesson for Occupy-era rabble-rousers: Only when coupled with a knowledge base will your sound and fury signify anything.

January 7, 2013 Full Review Source: Time Out Chicago
Time Out Chicago

The film is a tribute to political activism and the power of people to change the world.

January 1, 2013 Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope
Laramie Movie Scope

One of the most powerful, fascinating and saddest documentaries of the last several years.

December 28, 2012 Full Review Source: EntertainmentTell
EntertainmentTell

What making a difference is really all about!

December 16, 2012 Full Review Source: New York Press
New York Press

A cinematically sophisticated documentary that actually finds a way to be an intelligent and admirable work of art in addition to its more overt sociological implications.

December 13, 2012 Full Review Source: Antagony & Ecstasy
Antagony & Ecstasy

A brilliant blueprint on how to spark a revolution. The activists who were highlighted in this film are American heroes to us all - gay, straight, black, white, male or female.

December 7, 2012 Full Review Source: BET.com
BET.com

Compelling, important and inspiring documentary about the fight against AIDS.

November 28, 2012 Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

Beautifully inspiring and, obviously, also a great cautionary tale.

November 11, 2012 Full Review Source: Knight at the Movies
Knight at the Movies

A riveting look at LGBT protesters during the AIDS crisis - and an object lesson that if the revolution is going to be televised, it's good to have the revolutionaries holding the cameras.

October 19, 2012 Full Review Source: Salt Lake Tribune
Salt Lake Tribune

This is a moving documentary, as hopeful as it is tragic.

October 19, 2012 Full Review Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

The title doesn't necessarily convey this, but "How to Survive a Plague" is an inspiring and hopeful documentary.

October 18, 2012 Full Review Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press
St. Paul Pioneer Press

Audience Reviews for How to Survive a Plague

A topic that should have been more interesting to me... but it was quite hard for my interest to survive this dull documentary - and I usually like documentaries.
April 8, 2013
Tomassgringo

Super Reviewer

"How to Survive a Plague" is a sad, yet uplifting look at the coalitions ACT UP and TAG in the battle against AIDS. This documentary uses archival footage from the 80s and 90s to show the devastating effects of AIDS, and the constant struggle to get better medication to victims. Some of the footage is heartbreaking, some will enrage you, and some will show you that with enough support and enough people pushing for a cause, that anything can happen. AIDS is still prevalent in the world today, but it isn't nearly as destructive as it was, and it's because of the people showcased in this movie. It deserved it's nominated for "Best Documentary" at the Oscars, just as much so as the other 4 nominees. The movie drags a little in the middle, but I think it's because it doesn't have much of a narrative, and relies mostly on old footage to tell the story. Fascinating movie, that shines a light on taboo subject in our world. Definitely worth a watch.
February 26, 2013
Everett Johnson

Super Reviewer

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