killing patient zero review

But the O was mistaken for "Zero" at one point, giving the erroneous impression that Dugas was at the epicenter of the epidemic. SOEHNLEIN Buying Note: This digital screening is available to view between 12:01am Thursday, September 17 and 11:59pm Sunday, September 27. In early 1980s he contracted what was termed "gay cancer". A modern update of Day of the Dead, Patient Zero is a frightening horror-thriller. This is a space where subscribers can engage with each other and Globe staff. Privacy Policy | Avoid the use of toxic and offensive language. FEATURES of Killing Patient Zero FREE GAME: • 5 Challenging Levels • 50 Objects Per Level • … Shilts included a sensationalistic chapter about Dugas in And the Band Played On, which the book's editor, Michael Denneny, freely admits in the film was a hook to garner mainstream publicity. We hear a press conference where the President’s press secretary cracks a joke about AIDS and gets a nauseating laugh from the press corps. Gaëtan Dugas was a handsome French-Canadian flight attendant who, like most gay men in the seventies, dove headfirst into the pleasure-as-politics ethos of the burgeoning gay liberation movement. FACEBOOK Thank you for your patience. He publicly questions whether AIDS is sexually transmitted ­– Lynd includes eerie footage of Dugas speaking at an early AIDS awareness meeting in Vancouver – and continues to have sex. There’s just one problem: no one cares about it. The book explodes. 2019 Directed by Laurie Lynd. Sitemap | Click here to subscribe. He was just a man. This is the story of Gaetan Dugas, often known as Patient Zero of the AIDS crisis. Switch gears. Killing Patient Zero was an Official Selection and had its World Premiere at the 2019 Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival. DOC NYC 2019 Film Review: Killing Patient Zero ★★★★ This Sunday 10th November sees the United States premiere of Laurie Lynd’s Killing Patient Zero at DOC NYC in New York. That should have been the end. Gaëtan Dugas was long miscredited as 'patient zero' of the AIDS epidemic in North America. Killing Patient Zero…Review. The film also recounts the story of the disease that was first described as "gay cancer" and ultimately claimed the lives of millions of people worldwide. It is the 1970s. This article was published more than 1 year ago. Production company: Fadoo Productions Lynd, making a strong feature documentary debut after features like Breakfast with Scott , the hit TV series Schitt’s Creek and a number of award-winning shorts, puts Dugas’ personality and joie de vivre at the forefront of Killing Patient Zero . Dugas was first labelled Patient O for “outside of California,” but someone along the way mistakes the O for a zero. Review: Killing Patient Zero. Non-subscribers can read and sort comments but will not be able to engage with them in any way. Frank Scheck While Killing Patient Zero isn’t all that great of a documentary, what it does achieve instead is raise awareness of a fascinating issue. Lynd’s film is overstuffed with interviews, and at times, it is hard to keep track of all the players without a scorecard. The man known as "Patient Zero" himself died from AIDS in 1984 at age 31. I admit that walking into the documentary, Killing Patient Zero, I was relatively unaware of the story of “Patient Zero” and the role he had inadvertently played in the AIDS epidemic. Gaetan Dugas was a French-Canadian flight attendant, who offered to help early scientific research into the origins of AIDS. Welcome to The Globe and Mail’s comment community. But that is a minor quibble. Give your brain a workout and do today’s Daily Cryptic Crossword. This took over 50 years? There is no Patient Zero. Researchers come to see him and Dugas provides them with business cards and phone numbers from his black book. Welcome to The Globe and Mail’s comment community. "It was like cultural judo," Denneny comments, referring to his technique of using the paper's bias for his own ends. Being someone born long after the epidemic and it’s severe spreading, what really made me hooked into Killing Patient Zero, was the backstory of how the disease was spread. | EU Privacy Preferences. EMAIL ME Gaëtan Dugas reached up for the lights … He then made a point of eyeing the purple lesions on his chest. He was part of a "cluster study" tracing sexual contacts and labeled "Patient O," meaning "Out of California." It turns out he was a loving son, brother, and friend. As the film makes clear, he didn't cause the epidemic, he was merely one of its victims. Director: Laurie Lynd. Denneny gives the Dugas section to the tabloid. Also see: Killing Patient Zero – A Review. The doc puts all of this in historical context, to a slavish and sometimes excessive degree. by Andrew Parker April 24, 2019. written by Andrew Parker April 24, 2019. That Dugas couldn't possibly have infected all the men with whom he came into contact is forcefully argued by a scientist who points out that the infection has a 10-year latency period and that Dugas is a "classic scapegoat." When the AIDS epidemic hit, he was eventually tracked down by the CDC after several of his lovers became infected with the virus. Terms of Use | Director-screenwriter: Laurie Lynd With Gaëtan Dugas. That means: If you do not see your comment posted immediately, it is being reviewed by the moderation team and may appear shortly, generally within an hour. The medical community calls it gay cancer before settling on Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, AIDS. Reviewed by: Jennie Kermode. "We thought that sex was good for you, like kale," points out author Fran Lebowitz, one of the film's many onscreen commentators (and certainly the funniest). KILLING PATIENT ZERO centers the gay rights movement around the AIDS epidemic during the Reagan era. His sexual record-keeping immeasurably helps their work. PlayHOG presents Killing Patient Zero , a New Free Hidden Object game where we have carefully hidden 5 objects per level in a total of 50 levels to give you 250 objects to find. An unfortunate series of events followed and he would be wrongfully identified as Patient Zero. Then he gets sick. Posted at 5:26 pm by Geoff, on September 30, 2020. 6:19 AM PDT 5/9/2019 We aim to have all comments reviewed in a timely manner. Lynd’s film is overstuffed with interviews, and at times, it is hard to keep track of all the players without a scorecard. ‘Gay cancer,’ he said, almost as if he were talking to himself. Part of the Queer Screen FF. 153 likes. Producer: Corey Russell Some information in it may no longer be current. Discos, bathhouses and unrepentant promiscuous sex become symbols of newly won freedom. There’s a real evocative power to Killing Patient Zero. It is a heartbreakingly robust portrait of a community pushed to the margins and vilified due to political and social reasons. But there is a cost: Dugas becomes the face of Sodom. "Writer/director Laurie Lynd does a good job of bridging the gap between LGBTQ and straight audiences." | Do Not Sell My Personal Information Hot Docs review: Killing Patient Zero. Executive Producer: Trevor Birney. It is told by friends and associates, activists and artists, and various doctors and researchers of … hollywoodreporter.com - Laurie Lynd's documentary tells the story of the man falsely accused of spreading AIDS in North America. In the 1980s, the gay community is struck by a pink frost. © Copyright 2021 The Globe and Mail Inc. All rights reserved. We aim to create a safe and valuable space for discussion and debate. Killing Patient Zero is a Canadian documentary film, directed by Laurie Lynd and released in 2019. “Killing Patient Zero” Zero, the Man and the AIDS Epidemic Amos Lassen Most of us are aware of the phrase “Patient Zero” as the man “responsible” for bringing AIDS to the United States and who has become increasingly forgotten over time. It provides a mini-history of the gay rights movement, including such milestone as the Stonewall Riots and the sexual liberation of the 1970s. Crew: Producer: Corey Russell. The Post bites, the story goes national and The New York Times plays catch-up. Extremely handsome and wildly flamboyant, Dugas was unusual in that he made no effort to hide his homosexuality at a time when being gay was a stigma and, in many U.S. states, was a crime. Gaten Dugas is the Canadian falsely blamed for bringing AIDS to North America the 1970s. Dugas gets sick, he gets better, and then he dies in 1984 at 31. Hidden Object Games Killing Patient Zero People in search of challenging free hidden object games that features spectacular graphics and delivers hour after hour of fun, no longer have to wait. Laurie Lynd's film about the Air Canada flight attendant who was vilified and wrongly considered the epicentre of the AIDS epidemic is infuriating and heartfelt. Killing Patient Zero is an important work of queer archaeology that shines an empathetic light on a generation traumatized not just by a virus but by society’s blame and vitriol. Dugas refused to change his sexual behavior on the ground that no proof had yet been found that the disease was spreading by sexual contact. Venue: Hot Docs. If you would like to write a letter to the editor, please forward it to letters@globeandmail.com. We hope to have this fixed soon. We hear a horrifying audio clip from a press conference in which Ronald Reagan's press secretary Larry Speakes responds to a reporter's queries about the health crisis by making callous jokes. Although Killing Patient Zero clearly sets out to clean up Dugas' reputation, it also presents a complex portrait of a man whose behavior was self-destructive and dangerous. User Reviews. (This isn’t as evil as it sounds; the link between sex and AIDS was still being established.) Follow topics and authors relevant to your reading interests. Finally, Killing Patient Zero is an uncomfortable reminder of an uncomfortable era. Three years later, San Francisco writer Randy Shilts writes And The Band Played On, a painstakingly researched history of the early days of the AIDS epidemic. One of the most fascinating segments features archival footage from a Vancouver public forum in which Dugas forcefully pushes back against the idea that gay men should practice safe sex. Ask the average American how the AIDS epidemic reached the US and the chances are that, if they try to answer at all, they'll mention Patient Zero. Dugas is lovingly described by those who knew him as charming and good-hearted, and also very promiscuous. He enjoyed his job as a flight attendant for Air Canada. He is handsome, effervescent and vain; he has his uniform tailored tight to show off his body. Killing Patient Zero. In those moments, Lynd transforms Dugas from a stick-figure antichrist to a charismatic man who helped others – whether it was airline friends or the frantic researchers who came to see him when he was sick­. Based on Richard McKay's non-fiction book Patient Zero and the Making of the AIDS Epidemic, the doc presents a deeply personal portrait of Dugas, featuring affectionate reminiscences from several of his friends, colleagues and lovers. Corey Russell, one of the producers at the film’s production company Fadoo, had optioned the film rights to the book ‘Patient Zero and the Making of the AIDS Epidemic’ by Richard McKay. In its broadest strokes, Killing Patient Zero is a fact-packed look into a time that seemed to balance between the flamboyant era of free love and its dark under belly, homophobia and the rise of the AIDS epidemic. We are reminded of how many years then-President Reagan went without uttering the word AIDS (apparently, it only existed once his friend Rock Hudson contracted it). Director of photography: Paul Steinberg There is no Patient Zero. Dugas is an Air Canada steward. Killing Patient Zero rehabilitates the public image of Gaetan Dugas, the French-Canadian flight attendant widely known as the man almost single-handedly responsible for the AIDS epidemic. This film is informative and powerful, and aims to provide a clear reclamation of a false truth. KILLING PATIENT ZERO (Laurie Lynd, Canada). Laurie Lynd’s Killing Patient Zero asks an essential question: Where does a dead man go to get his reputation back? Laurie Lynd’s feature length documentary Killing Patient Zero is a compelling, detailed exploration of how a French Canadian flight attendant, Gaëtan Dugas, came to be branded by the media as ‘Patient Zero’ and was widely blamed for the initial spread of AIDS among gay men in the USA. As the doc methodically illustrates, Dugas was an unfairly maligned, complex figure whose reputation was destroyed thanks to his notorious depiction in Randy Shilts' groundbreaking book And the Band Played On. He leaked the excerpt to the famously right-wing New York Post, resulting in front-page coverage and the banner headline "The Man Who Gave Us AIDS." © 2021 The Hollywood Reporter, LLC. TWITTER Bigots whisper it is just punishment, sinners in the hands of an angry god. All rights reserved. Comments that violate our community guidelines will not be posted. ‘Maybe you’ll get it too.’”. AdChoices Directed by Laurie Lynd. Lynd’s squadrons of talking heads – friends, doctors and scientists ­– argue that the scapegoating of Dugas was unforgivable, not to mention untrue. Lynd has restored Dugas to imperfect flesh and blood. The film, which recently received its world premiere at Toronto's Hot Docs festival, is a fascinating eye-opener. 351 King Street East, Suite 1600, Toronto, ON Canada, M5A 0N1, Due to technical reasons, we have temporarily removed commenting from our articles. Before watching the documentary Killing Patient Zero, I knew very little about Gaetan Dugas. If you are looking to give feedback on our new site, please send it along to, To view this site properly, enable cookies in your browser. Kick back with the Daily Universal Crossword. There is also a sense of restorative justice and narrative reclamation that makes this film feel very poignant. Dugas was demonized for his promiscuity and wrongfully identified as patient zero. I’ll remember the interviews with Dugas’s friends and fellow Air Canada workers. He was not Lucifer. Dugas loves to fly, and he loves to hook up with hundreds of partners a year. An unfortunate series of events followed and he would be villified as Patient Zero, the man who gave us AIDS. Dugas only appears on a few pages of Shilts’s massive book, but the details are lurid: “When the moaning stopped, the young man rolled over on his back for a cigarette. 100 minutes. He provided blood samples and 72 names of his former sex partners. The title makes it sound like a Cold War spy thriller, but Laurie Lynd's documentary actually sets out to right a wrong. Gaetan Dugas was openly gay. hotdocs.ca.. Canadian director … It can’t just be the mutation of cells. Killing Patient Zero. In desperation, Shilts’s editor, a now semi-repentant Michael Denneny, begs a publicist friend for help. To me, the story explores the way … But that is a minor quibble. Gaetan Dugas was a French-Canadian flight attendant, who offered to help early scientific research into the origins of AIDS. by There are heartbreaking Catch-22 moments. The publicist has a diabolical plan: give the virulently anti-gay New York Post a small excerpt where Shilts singles out Dugas as the original sinner of the AIDS crisis. It is a time of ecstasy. Tweet. Synopsis The story of the AIDS epidemic and the man accused of starting it all. (Shilts would die of AIDS in 1994.) Although Killing Patient Zero clearly sets out to clean up Dugas' reputation, it also presents a complex portrait of a man whose behavior was self-destructive and dangerous. But he does something else. September 9, 2020 Jack King. Editor: Trevor Ambrose Through interviews and archival footage, the first section of Lynd’s documentary joyfully captures the time: men coming out and finally living the life they want. Scoop a new vibe in the numbers and do today’s Daily Sudoku. Frameline Review: ‘Killing Patient Zero’. In the 1980s, the assistance of a gay flight attendant helps medical researchers prove that HIV/AIDS is a sexually transmitted disease. — K.M. The title makes it sound like a Cold War spy … The gay rights movement is emerging from eternal repression in the wake of Stonewall. But he cooperated fully with the scientists investigating the epidemic, providing the names of his lovers (at least the ones he could remember) and even traveling to Atlanta at one point to give a blood sample. Readers can also interact with The Globe on Facebook and Twitter . Killing Patient Zero bestows a posthumous medal of honour upon Dugas as it corrects his story. THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER is a registered trademark of The Hollywood Reporter, LLC. | California Privacy Rights This is a space where subscribers can engage with each other and Globe staff. I just watched this movie for maybe the 10th time, and I'm just now realizing that there's so much more to it than a sci-fi movie. The story of the AIDS epidemic and the man accused of starting it all. Killing Patient Zero opens July 26 in Toronto. Over 50 years? Killing Patient Zero. Enter French-Canadian Gaëtan Dugas. But then his own people victimize him. Tragically, the golden age lasts a mere decade. He was so-named in journalist Randy Shilts’ influential nonfiction book “And the Band Played… Read our, I'm a print subscriber, link to my account, Read more about following topics and authors. Associate Producer: Yves Basaillon Christian Medawar. Someone has to be blamed for this catastrophe. His vocation enabled him to travel throughout America and allowed the opportunity for countless sexual liaisons. Lynd skillfully lays out the facts; Dugas and his lovers were just part of one of many early clusters of the disease. Apr 26, 8:30 pm, TIFF 1 Apr 27, 12:30 pm, Scotiabank 4 May 3, 2:45 pm, Hart House. UPDATED: Read our community guidelines here. It’s a compelling exploration of how a French Canadian flight attendant, Gaetan Dugas, came to be branded by the media as ‘Patient Zero’ and was widely blamed for bringing the HIV virus into the US. That is achievement enough. Was sacrificing one already dead man for the cause worth it? There is no closet for him. In the film’s most haunting moment, Denneny­ justifies his actions as “cultural judo.” By vilifying Dugas, he is serving the larger good of the community. Offered to help early scientific research into the origins of AIDS Buying Note: digital! Show off his body he were talking to himself Zero is a space subscribers... May 3, 2:45 pm, Hart House written by Andrew Parker April,! Write a letter to the Globe and Mail Inc. all rights reserved he was French-Canadian... Immune Deficiency Syndrome, AIDS cancer, ’ he said, almost as he! 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By Frank Scheck FACEBOOK TWITTER EMAIL me YOUTUBE to political and social.... Researchers come to see him and Dugas provides them with business cards and phone numbers from his black....
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