Sorry, this movie sucks

ridiculous rating

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

I'm going to skip the rant about how hard it was being a WASP in the nineties. If you get it, you get it; if you don't, you never will.The writing is terrible. Oh, my God, the writing is anvilicious. "Don't have sex! But if you do, please misuse condoms!" Because no, I'm sorry, you don't double-bag it; condoms are not grocery sacks. They are more likely to break if you do that. The real Ms. Gertz was direly mistaken in this respect, as her People interview shows."Positive thinking makes it better! Don't give up!" I swear if I'd been down a long, painful road like Nancy the cancer patient and some pipsqueak rich kid tried to tell me to hang on, I'd slap her stupid. Sometimes the pain is too great and death is legitimately a release.What this film does address, what it could not have escaped addressing, was the hit-or-miss nature of early AIDS treatment. Pretty much every drug available had hideous side effects; Gertz's reaction to AZT in 1989 would've hit directly after ddI was made available by the FDA to patients with just that problem -- just patients with just that problem.The film also does a decent job of portraying AIDS as a horror show, not a mild inconvenience, thus rendering it unfashionable for its target audience. No, you certainly don't want to wind up in the ICU with your mother microwaving towels just to keep you warm. Mr. and Mrs. Gertz redeem the film somewhat with their boundless love for Alison. He walks her purse dog when she's sick; she... well, she microwaved freaking sweated-through towels in an ICU too scared to bother with proper care.All the same, thank goodness we no longer classify our AIDS stories according who's more deserving of the disease (!) -- no transmission method is better than another, given the result. It doesn't matter how AIDS happens. If you have it, then you live with it and will die with it. Who are any of us to judge how you got it?

Ever since I can remember I have had a massive crush on Molly Ringwald who in this film takes on the best role of her career as Alison Gertz a truly inspirational woman who died of aids in 1992. Molly and a great supporting cast show the true devastation that this disease causes on a person with (at the time of infection) no previous sexual experience, no drug taking past and no history of blood transfusion. The best line of the film is when Alison stands up and says "look at me, i am the face of aids" showing that despite some peoples misconceptions people with aids look no different to you and me. The film makes good use of its lead characters and makes what could have easily been a typically preachy TV-movie into a viewing experience that (whilst sometimes unpleasant) is educating and informative whilst not being boring.Molly received (quite rightly) an emmy award for her acting in this film and it is easy to see why as when you view this film you feel as if you are living the experience with her and a good performer should make you feel this way during any acting performance. This tele-film has affected me in a way that no other tele-film has done before or since. It has a stellar cast (Lee Grant and Martin Landau as the parents) its doesn't preach and doesn't pretend to be something that it isn't. If this had been a big Hollywood blockbuster then the story would not have been so well told and would have been padded out. This film should be shown in schools to educate young people of the dangers of aids.What makes the film really magnificent is how it challenges people's beliefs about aids and presents a true story in a well written non-preachy and non-patronising way. Well acted and a true masterpiece thats very rare in TV-movie land.If you would like to know more about Alison Gertz and pledge your support for aids victims then please visit www.loveheals.org thanks!For the benifit of those not in the know this movie is called Fatal Love here in the u.k and is available on Odyssey video

"Alison Gertz-The Role Model to All The AIDS Infectors." is the first and only sentence I speak out by the light of nature after I feelingly watched this great movie. Alison is a great character. She enjoyed everything like other girls in 20s. Having boyfriends and attended various public meetings or parties, she is a active, recognized-charming and little-unbridled lady. On the eve of her marriage, something shocking happened to her. What a shocking thing that can make her marriage waterloo ? The disease-AIDS !! Our character Alison was diagnosed a AIDS infector. Everything changed and she now just can stay in bed for endless time waiting the nurses helping her doing everything. What Alison undergo in the future of combating with AIDS and whether she become stronger are the common remained thoughts that will in watcher's mind. Leading actress Molly did a great job. She showed me how Alison-a infant AIDS Infector-grow with conquering and finally became a mature leader as the mentally successful conquer of AIDS which is a disease that changed her life. I very much appreciate the character Alison and Molly's great performance of this special and hard role. In the movie, the role Alison's Father, Mother and her best friend also very important. Their reflections to Alison's disease and the very moment that realizing she is a AIDS infector somewhat reflect the director's view about how people treat their family members, friends or best friends when they realized they are AIDS infectors. So, this movie is like a mirror where you can see what different people do in face of a AIDS infector who maybe their friend, one of the family members or loved one. Alison have three boy friends at different life periods. However, only one of them, a Israeli boy who give Alison a book called LOVE MEDICINE and HOPE, helped Alison by emotional cares. Other two all leave her away with disloyal excuses which made Alison deeply in sad for a long time. Directed by Mcloughlin, this is a movie with a perfect ending like Lost in Translation (2001). Different from Lost in Translation which is sad love story, the story line of Something to live for : The Alison Gertz Story is dealing with one person's experience towards something that is sad. The Alison Gertz Story is filmed and shown on TV in 1992, 13 years later the issue AIDS is still a serious case throughout the world. In America, in Europe, in Asia and in Africa specially, this monster (AIDS) eats up a great amount of normal people's normal life. Each AIDS Awareness Day, we remember them in heart. As South Africa's worldwide show 46664 held by former South Africa president Nelson Mandela, AIDS has been awared in the most stricken area-Africa. And, to us, REwatch Something to live for : The Alison Gertz Story (1992) TV is a great education that can affect on our ideology deeply towards the AIDS or potentially AIDS infectors. For the forever combat with AIDS, For the people around us, For AIDS infectors, For everyone, it worth rewatching this 1992-made TV movie as a great education !

I actually taped this movie 8 years ago and watched it for the first time since I had originally seen it. I loved the movie and thought Molly did a great job doing Alison. Lee and Martin did a good job too. I think that the best line in the whole film is when Alison says that most people think that AIDS is some kind of punishment for either taking drugs and/or sleeping around. That to me could not be a better line. I would not say this is the best movie regarding AIDS but one of the first that really try to deal with it early on......