The Normal Heart (2014)

A gay activist attempts to raise H.I.V. and A.I.D.S. awareness during the early 1980s.

Director:

Ryan Murphy

Writers:

Larry Kramer (screenplay), Larry Kramer (play)

Stars:

Mark Ruffalo, Jonathan Groff, Frank De Julio

Won 1 Golden Globe. Another 27 wins & 54 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mark Ruffalo	...	Ned Weeks
Jonathan Groff	...	Craig
Frank De Julio	...	Nick
William DeMeritt	...	Nino
Taylor Kitsch	...	Bruce Niles
Joe Mantello	...	Mickey Marcus
Sean Meehan	...	Morton
Stephen Spinella	...	Sanford
Jill Melanie Wirth	...	Receptionist
BD Wong	...	Buzzy
Julia Roberts	...	Dr. Emma Brookner
Jim Parsons	...	Tommy Boatwright
Adam B. Shapiro	...	Bella (as Adam Shapiro)
John Mainieri	...	John
Matt Bomer	...	Felix Turner

Storyline

The story of the onset of the HIV-AIDS crisis in New York City in the early 1980s, taking an unflinching look at the nation's sexual politics as gay activists and their allies in the medical community fight to expose the truth about the burgeoning epidemic to a city and nation in denial.

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Plot Keywords:

new york city | gay | gay writer | fear of weakness | playwright | 

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Taglines:

To win a war, you have to start one.

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Genres:

Drama | History | Romance

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 May 2014 (USA)

Also Known As:

Det normala hjärtat

Filming Locations:

New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

HBO Films, Plan B Entertainment, Blumhouse Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

132 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White (archive material) Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

For the 2011 Broadway premiere of the play "The Normal Heart", Playwright Larry Kramer wrote a flyer called "Please Know" (which he often handed out to exiting audience members himself). "Please Know" explained that most of the events and characters in the play were based on real events, and people. Some of the real people he said his characters were based on included: Paul Popham, one of the founders of the Gay Men's Health Crisis (the basis for Bruce); Dr. Linda Laubenstein, an early AIDS researcher (the basis for Emma); and Rodger McFarlane, Creator of the crisis hotline, that was the precursor to the GMHC and gay rights activist (the basis for Tommy). Like McFarlane, Tommy is a Southerner (McFarlane was born and raised in South Alabama). Like Laubenstein, Emma uses a wheelchair (Laubenstein was left paraplegic after a childhood bout with polio). Although this was not mentioned in Kramer's handout, the character of Felix also had a real-life inspiration: John Duka, who, during the early 1980s, wrote a column in the New York Times' Thursday Style section titled "Notes on Fashion". Duka had been openly gay while working at New York Magazine, but upon his move to the Times in 1980, he felt he needed to re-closet himself, because of the Times' then-more-conservative attitudes. Also like Felix, he also had a brief marriage to a woman. The character of Ned is based on Kramer himself.

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Goofs

When Ned and his friends are trying to collect money for "Gay Cancer" in the park, the 3 quarters one donor throws down are all from the State Quarter Series, which was begun by the US Mint in 1999.

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Quotes

Dr. Emma Brookner: Don't need everybody's love and approval.

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Connections

Referenced in The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Steve Buscemi/Taylor Kitsch/Jon Rineman (2015)

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Soundtracks

Dance (Disco Heat)
Written by Eric Robinson (as Eric Jay Robinson) and Victor Osborn
Performed by Sylvester
Courtesy of Concord Music Group, Inc.

User Reviews

Touching, Heartwarming and Truly Devastating

I am struggling to find the right words to use. This movie was/is one of the most brilliantly written, brilliantly directed and acted that I have seen in years. The pain and struggles were balanced with just the right amount of laughter as to not completely destroy the watcher. Make no mistake, you will be destroyed at the end but somehow you don't mind. This is a MUST watch for anyone under 40 especially. For those of us that are old enough to remember what those early days were like, it is a reminder that is painful to watch, but makes us joyful that we have come so far. We still have so much farther to go. Mark Ruffalo's performance was extraordinary! His grief, his anger and his passion were palpable. The performance by Jim Parsons blew me out of the water. Good lord it make actually make me watch his TV comedy now that I've seen this!