Positive: Life with HIV

Before AIDS kills, there is living left to do. Positive: Life with HIV is about that window of time between diagnosis and death, and what a person and a community can make of it. A four-hour cabaret of HIV positive people and their attitudes and circumstances, Positive brims with the intensity of life before it is cut short, and the creativity of people determined to make the best of the worst. Interspersed with personal narratives of HIV positive people from many backgrounds are artistic, sometimes sardonic responses to the epidemic, including a street dance full of rage and a wicked cartoon advising HIV positive folks to max out their credit cards before their own expiration dates. These zippy interludes serve as breathers between the heavier personal narratives, the real meat of the video. We meet Stephanie, a suburban girl whose dad is dead from AIDS. Louis, a former addict who opens a shelter supplying unconditional love. Lum, a gay teen who must write to his Chinese mother about his disease. Positive: Life with HIV is best at portraying the diversity of emotional responses to AIDS, from desperation to resolve to epiphany. Who are you? asks the video. Do you like how your community treats you? The answers are worth listening to. At such a low price, there is no reason for a library to be without this series. Highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (A. Laker)