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Parker Posey, Olympia Dukakis, Don McKellar, Sarah Polley, Brent Carver ... see more see more... , Jane Leeves , Joanna Adler , Rejean J. Cournoyer , Christina Zorich , Dick Latessa , Cynthia Preston , Glen Michael Grant , Gianna Marciante , Jaclyn Markowitz

Canadian filmmaker Thom Fitzgerald directs the sentimental ensemble drama The Event. Nick (Parker Posey) is a district attorney investigating several deaths in the gay community of New York City's Che... read more read more...lsea District. It seems that many AIDS sufferers have died under similar mysterious circumstances. Each case suggest the use of assisted suicide, which is illegal in New York. HIV-infected cellist Matt (Don McKellar) has died of a drug overdose following a large party in Manhattan given by his family and friends. Nick first questions his lover Brian (Brent Carver), who runs an HIV support clinic. Still looking for answers, she interviews Matt's closest family members, including his mother Lila (Olympia Dukakis), his younger sister Dana (Sarah Polley), and his older sister Gaby (Joanna P. Adler). Meanwhile, Nick battles with her own past secrets involving her family back in New Jersey. The Event premiered at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

Flixster Users

53% liked it

1,149 ratings

Critics

43% liked it

47 critics

R, 1 hr. 50 min.

Directed by: Thom Fitzgerald

Release Date: October 3, 2003

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DVD Release Date: April 13, 2004

Stats: 43 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (43)

  • Redlats
    November 25, 2008
    Redlats
    A New York DA is investigating a suspicious suicide in the city's gay community. The movie turns into a debate on the pros and cons of assisted suicide. There are a few name actors in this movie (Olympia Dukakis, Sarah Polley, Parker Posey, etc.).

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Critic Reviews

Allison Benedikt
December 18, 2003
Allison Benedikt, Chicago Tribune

To make a movie in 2003, one that centers around AIDS but ignores the epidemic's current culprit, Africa, and toys melodramatically with scenarios steeped in the filmmakers' selfish nostalgia without ... Full Review

Charles Ealy
November 25, 2003
Charles Ealy, Dallas Morning News

The performances of Olympia Dukakis as Matt's mother and Sarah Polley as his sister elevate The Event from melodramatic claptrap to sensitive drama. Full Review

Janice Page
November 21, 2003
Janice Page, Boston Globe

A feminine hygiene commercial is by far the best thing here. Is that last item a curious thing to say about a film with such a weighty agenda? Exactly. Full Review

Michael O'Sullivan
November 7, 2003
Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post

Despite its impeccable acting and subtle backdrop of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, The Event lets its message overwhelm its emotion.

Bob Campbell
October 9, 2003
Bob Campbell, Newark Star-Ledger

Fails equally as lament and celebration. Full Review

Scott Brown
October 8, 2003
Scott Brown, Entertainment Weekly

Aggressively drab and granular, the movie feels like a late-'80s AIDS passion play given an ill-fitting post-Sept. 11 makeover. Full Review

Stephanie Zacharek
October 4, 2003
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

Maybe part of the reason The Event works so well is that Fitzgerald doesn't have compassion only for people dying of AIDS; his compassion rings out for anyone who's dying, period, as well as for the f... Full Review

Peter Howell
October 3, 2003
Peter Howell, Toronto Star

A sensitive and uplifting look at the reality of living while dying from AIDS. Full Review

Megan Lehmann
October 3, 2003
Megan Lehmann, New York Post

Purports to be a life- affirming celebration of a dying AIDS victim's last days, but soporific direction and awkward line readings paradoxically give it the air of a funeral dirge.

Liam Lacey
October 3, 2003
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

The movie feels like a nineties' artifact, less the AIDS-crisis wake-up call it purports to be than a melodramatic free ride. Full Review

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