2021 Show
Russell T Davies · United Kingdom, United States of America · English, Portuguese
A vibrant, moving miniseries about a loving community broken down by the AIDS crisis in the UK
Emotional and increasingly hard to watch over its five episodes, It’s a Sin nevertheless reminds us about an aspect of the AIDS crisis that often gets buried underneath accounts of suffering and injustice. We’re shown a truly supportive, joyful community that wasn’t simply engaging in shallow pleasures, but helping each other become their best selves. This optimism at the beginning gives the miniseries an even more tragic quality, as these characters struggle to recover from the initial shock and confusion of the spread of this disease. It’s a smartly paced and economical show that that still manages to show off the talents of a brilliant cast—in particular, Olly Alexander, Callum Scott Howells, and a star-making turn from Lydia West going toe-to-toe with the exceptional Keeley Hawes in a scene-stealing guest role.
A chronicle of five friends during a decade in which everything changed, including the rise of AIDS.
"It's a Sin brings back the shock of seeing young men first diminished and demented by an opaque, devastating disease, then treated with barbaric cruelty by an ignorant and bigoted establishment."
— Rebecca Mead
"Characters like Roscoe and Jill are so frustrating - the series does not care enough about exploring their inner lives or letting them share the spotlight. But it does let them share in the joyful parts. It's not enough, but it's not nothing."
— Kathryn VanArendonk
Emil Hofileña is a curator at A Good Movie to Watch. He also writes as a theater critic, with work published in Rogue and Out of Print, among others. He’s probably crying over a movie or an episode as we speak.
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