Member review

Philadelphia is a surprisingly captivating movie. It closely follows the life of a homosexual lawyer, suffering from AIDS, played by actor Tom Hanks. The film’s compelling nature is found not from its name, or its roster of well-known actors, but the messages it puts forward; those of which were highly controversial at the time due to the era. The aforementioned AIDS disease was, quite literally, avoided like the plague at the time of shooting the film. This has a major effect on the life of the main protagonist, Andrew Beckett, who believes he is fired because he has this disease, and goes from there by accusing his firm of discrimination. Along the story, the film does a great job of portraying the life of Beckett. One of many controversies includes the successful lawyer working from home for some time, where he also attempts to hide his lesions, as he knew that they were a clear sign of his suffering of AIDS. While his work from home was supposed to be filed away safely, it was not; and this is used as a reason for Beckett’s firing. Only then comes the grim realisation that Beckett was fired due to his illness. Story aside, Hanks deserved his pay-cheque before they started filming. He lost an immense amount of weight to take-on the role, showing a level of greatness mirrored only by the quality of the film itself. All in all, the film is a must-watch.