The Origins of AIDS

The Origins of AIDS is a provocative documentary suggesting that the 20th century's most virulent epidemic, known to have evolved from a simian immunodeficiency virus, might in fact have been the inadvertent result of scientific testing aimed at developing a polio vaccine. Writer-director Peter Chappell and co-director Catherine Peix make the case that research scientist Hilary Koprowski may have used infected chimpanzees in the preparation of an experimental vaccine, which he then injected into some one million Africans between 1957 and 1960. Of course, the scientific community is very much split on this particular contention, and this award-winning film takes time to present dissenting views, while also debating the larger ethical questions arising from the subject of controversial research. At 43 minutes, the film offers a concise, cogent look at the possible origins of this horrible disease, and while it doesn't deliver irrefutable answers, it certainly presents a very thought-provoking thesis. Recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (E. Hulse)