I hate to blast this movie because Hanks was so great but...

As a gay man I was both horrified and pleased by this film. For one thing, it dealt with AIDS--I believe this was the first movie like that from a major Hollywood studio. Also Tom Hanks was absolutely great in the movie. And it looks good and treated gay men rather well (considering it's a major studio film). Still...this movie does NOT show AIDS as it really is. I've seen friends die of it so I know what I'm talking about. Also there is NO affection shown between Hanks and Banderas (they play lovers). There's one quick kiss and a little hugging--that's it. Heaven forbid we show them kissing! That would disgust people! Also Hanks family being behind him and so noble--COME ON! NO family like that exists! They hired a bunch of great actors (especially Joanne Woodward) but I didn't believe them for one second. Also the anti-gay remarks got to me. Yeah, I know they're trying to make a point but still... And all the gays being stereotypically swishy or noble got annoying. And AIDS is no longer an automatic death sentence.

So, the acting is great except for Denzel Washington. It was a good piece of casting (Washington has admitted that he's homphobic) but he's terrible. Maybe it was hitting him too close to what he's really like.

If you want to see a true picture of AIDS get "Longtime Companion" or "It's My Party". If you want to see a sanitized, stereotyped, incorrect version of gays and AIDS, by all means see this.