抱紧他

电影的最后四分之一，我已无法控制观看时的啜泣。我把自己代入TIM的角色，我在思考，如果我爱的人是因为我而感染了AIDS，终日躺在病床上受尽折磨，原本强壮的身躯变得这般羸弱，这比用刀子剐我的心还让人痛苦。
    他不怨我，他咬牙忍受着被手术刀插进肺部，结束后只是对我眨了下眼睛：你瞧，不过如此而已。我望着他，想起我们认识了十五个年头的春夏，想起了他是我第一次爱的人，也是唯一的爱人。我就知道，即使我没有被病魔夺走生命，我也再不能安然度过我残喘的余生。于是当我费尽一切完成了剧本，完整记录了我们的所有关于爱的痕迹，我就明白，我终于可以抛下一切来另一个世界与你汇合了。
    尽管我知道无论多久，你都会在那里等我，但是天堂虽美，我怕你孤独。

作为一个阅（基）片无数的资深观众，有两类基片是个人一直无感的，一类是不停扣宗教帽子的，一类就是总把搞基跟AIDS划等号或者约等号的。

这部电影其实新鲜出炉的时候就下了高清双语字幕版，当时好像也是被人推荐的吧，但大致知道是讲什么的以后，便一直放在硬盘里积灰尘，始终提不起多大兴趣。最近差不多是清理文件的时候，发现当初辛苦下了不少电影都没看，就像完成任务一样开始规定自己每天要看一部——最少半部，好歹要对得起那些能无忧无虑免费蹭用某些下载软件的日子……

怎么说呢，这部电影在拍摄手法和故事情节上并没有太多新意，或者说吸引眼球的地方，一个天生的基友看上了一个帅哥并成功把他掰弯，两人从最初的甜甜蜜蜜你侬我侬发展到了一定的倦怠期，片中没有拍摄出男二也就是John吃野食的片段，但是从两人刚得知都是positive的对话中可以猜出一二——假如John没有吃过野食的话，他绝不可能马上就认为是自己传染给Tim的。当然，就算没有这些明示暗示的对话，用膝盖也可以想到，要找一个一辈子没吃过野食的基友，比中彩票难度大多了，此处省略一万字……

但是当Tim以异地恋为名经过了一段夜夜笙歌只谈性不谈情的时期后，再次登上舞台前，还是跟初次登台时一样，从幕帘里往外窥探，希望可以看到那张熟悉的脸，结果他再度失望了，可是剧情很快又有了转机——当他站在舞台上，即将讲出那句最重要的台词前，他看到了观众席上对他微笑的John，于是他临场把台词说成了“I want you back again,please…John”，此处确定无疑是全剧的高潮。

其实两人从来没说过分手，但是异地恋以及倦怠期内的渐行渐远让两人的关系岌岌可危却是不争的事实，有些东西是不需要语言来表达的，最亲近的人言谈举止上的变化，特别是对自己态度上的转变，只要有心分分钟就能发现不是吗。于是在这段关系中，John首先选择了妥协和让步，他主动来看了Tim的表演，并打算留在悉尼发展。而Tim也在那一刻眼神的碰撞中，在电光火石间明白了John对自己的重要性，所以才有了这句深情的告白。这句看似简单的话，既是道歉，亦是承诺。

之后John病发以及跟病魔斗争的那一段拍得无比真实，让人有些不寒而栗。个人觉得吧，这段抗病史实在太长，在电影中占的比重过大（整整1/3⊙﹏⊙‖° ），不过也许这就是导演和作者本人最想表现的部分吧，而且也正是这一段患难见真情让观众明白了，无论之前两人有过多少不忠于对方的行为，两人之间确实是真爱，穿越生死的那种。

当John在弥留之际，Tim支开了John那位开明的妈妈，爬上了John的病床后回忆的种种——我脑海中竟然闪过了这句话，人生若只如初见，何事秋风悲画扇。

还有首尾照应的那段在意大利的朝圣之旅，也让人百感交集，因为我也是那种会去某些特定的地方，寻找喜欢的人曾经留下足迹的偏执狂╮(~﹏~)╭

假如电影中基本还原了当事人当时的心理状态，那我依然觉得这是一段无限接近于完美的爱情。因为即便结局在外人看来如此凄惨，却没有人埋怨，没有人互相责怪，甚至没有人正经八百去讨论过到底是谁拖累了谁，我想，这种感情和信任即便在普通直人夫妻中也绝不会多见，不然怎么会有“夫妻本为同龄鸟，大难临头各自飞”这种警世名言呢。

有一句说一句，不知道为什么总有人爱拿这部片子跟《断背山》比，其实我压根也没明白《断》到底因何而经典？是因为导演的B格高？还是因为《断》是很多人看的第一部基片，有雏鸟情结？真的严重怀疑打高分的很多这辈子就只看过《断背山》这一部基片。别说《断》在我看过的基片里前二十都挤不进，光跟这一部比也绝对是完败好吗……《断》的两个男主完全是因为寂寞而互相取暖，跟那些所谓“监狱轶事”并没有本质上的区别，然后明明已经弯了还要结婚，结了婚以后又要出来鬼混，害人害己，哪来那么多的感动，本人实在无法理解……还有对于某类人把情节交代不清辩解为是一种高端艺术表现形式的奇葩行为——好想大吼一句，你妈喊你回家吃饭了……

最后还是要深度吐槽一下那些以容易传播AIDS为由对搞基零容忍的恐同患者，请问是不是因为有人被狗咬了得了狂犬，就应该把全世界的狗都杀光？请问是不是有傻缺做了缺心眼的事，就应该把全世界的傻缺都活埋了呢？这种神一般的逻辑恕我这个学霸都跟不上节奏哈╮(~▽~)╭

分两次才看完，因为看到一半悲伤到没有勇气继续。电影中很多很多的小细节给我留下了异常深刻的印象。 Tim与Richard握手后的不自然，最后Tim拆礼物时的躁动与忍耐还有当时John温柔的目光与声音。喜欢John对于Tim探索与其他人性爱的拒绝与直白的表达，看到他在打沙滩排球时冲上去分开Tim与另一个男孩并狠狠给了Tim一拳觉得非常欣慰，同时看到他一个人转身离去，轻声ask for a ride又突然很心疼。抛开同性与艾滋的话题，这就是一部非常写事感人的爱情故事，青春的爱恋，现实与诱惑，以及最后的分离，我希望他们的灵魂最终是相守的。Tim, John was always beside you.

关于艾滋，看完电影心中当然的会为John不值。可是大概这就是现实，那么多的爱恋与不离不弃抵不过一个意外。我试着不去想究竟John是献血意外感染还是因为open relationship时与不同人的性爱传染。大概这就是现实，充满了意外与不公。然而John从来没有为此后悔，埋怨或是为自己的病感到羞愧，他对生活对爱有一种温柔但坚定的勇气。

我们这一代是探索的一代，这本身并没有任何的错，但是不管怎样的探索都应该明确想过后果才做决定，无论是怎样的决定。

I didn't make it to the world premiere of Holding the man (2015) last Sunday in Sydney State Theater. But many friends went and spoke highly of. I did a quick check online and found out how influential the book has been ,basically the gay bible for Australian LGBT groups. Published in 1994, this auto-biography of Timothy Conigrave has shocked the whole Australia by its pure and real narration on homosexual love and also the description period in 1980s when HIV stroke Australia. And the play, adapted by Tommy Murphy in 2005, was also a legend in Australian theatre history, totally crash of ticket box wherever it toured. Not only has the play been on in almost every major cities in Australia and adapted by multiple theater companies such as Belvoir and Australia theater company, it also has made to London and LA for world tour. The legend continues for almost ten years and finally in 2014, director decided to adapt this story to big screen. While Tommy Murphy got rehired as screenplay writer and two hot popular Australian actors as lead, this movie has definitely become the most expected movie of the year. Audiences may get a bit worried due to the hyper successful play as a comparison. As a story about intimacy and delicate emotions, it could be much more easily demonstrated on a single stage with touching and smart dialogues. Fancy cinematographic work or extra mise-en scene could serve as minor importance in story-telling itself. But still, there are definitely more space to develop this romance in film.

It is the autobiography at first place that attracted most, with the real story of Timothy and his 15-year partners John holding hand together through bitter-sweet first love, sex, fights, disease and finally death.

I'm such kind of person who just cannot hold back my curiosity on such literary works. After searching online without finding new books to sell or ebook to download, I went down to the uni library and borrowed the only copy of Murphy's play. While unfortunately there was still no Timothy's work, it's worth reading the play first to see how he carried out this life-long story in a two-act play.

It didn't take me long to read, maybe 2 hours or so. But I was sort of blushed inbetween sometimes, imagining the actors talking so bluntly at stage, about the expression of love and sex. Murphy ingeniously separate the two acts with scenes of love and sorrow, making audiences smile or unable to stop laughing for some of humors at first but incredibly sad and may even cry out loud during the second set. Handful of casts but every role is just en-punto.

The very thing that touched me in this play is that the whole storyline and every details of love and conflicts are so real, which could happening any place or just next-door, but people just failed to notice how normal LGBT group is or how fragile true love is, as any types of groups or love. But all we could think about is "weird" "sissy""always fighting for marriage""unhealty life styles" or "HIV positive " and so on.

Three scenes in the play has left me strong impression.

The first one lie in the beginning when Tim wrote John the letter after their first date, talking about the erection he had and masturbation afterwords with the worry about the expression on sex could be so rush for a new couple. The monologue felt so bold yet cute when actually spoken out from a 16-year old schoolboy. While john is the one who actually read the letter with Tim adding up some of his feeling on the side, the audiences could definitely feel the chemistry and the beautiful blump in-between.

The second could be when Tim, in his puberty and freshly new in college, went throughout all these temptation in gay bar and gay peers. He gradually accepted the "non-monogamy or open relationship" theory and decided to separate with John for a while. He alleged that they are both "sexual inexperienced" due to long relationship with purely each other . I believe that most of the audiences and readers will feel the stupidity and ignorance of Tim to trying to sabotage this wonderful relationship and affection(which has been built up throughout the previous scenes). This can be a turning point of the play and indicated the heartbreaking ending, especially when Tim regretted to have infected AIDS to John and cried in front her mom for redemption. But ultimately it shocks me by putting out straightly and ruthlessly how fragile love could be when facing temptations and fresh inspirations.

My finally emotional outcry goes to a simple gesture or move instead a complete scene. Though I have to admit that the whole "finding out HIV positive" scenes is torturing and heartbreaking. The simple gesture that Tim "lifts up John's shirt with his mouth and snaked his head underneath it" when they lay on bed after the news and couldn't go to sleep. With too many briliant dialogues and plots in this play, this move had just crushed all the doubts and sadness about their relationship, leaving the ultimate intimacy and trust and treasure of each other. When that scene is supposed to be haunted with endless sorrow from on and off stage, this move has made us recall the beauty of love and support. Since in the play, the bed was hanging vertical above stage (audiences actually standing while leaning on the bed) , making audience have every move in sight. What's more, the design stage is lovely with the dim and lovely light around the bed on the dark and only some photos of their life together seen from behind. I can barely think of any better innovation in the film to surpass this scene.

Though over three theaters around Australia has their versions and actors for this play, I still adore the first pair in Belvoir Sydney, Guy Edmond and Matt Zeremes just got this absolute chemistry and original innocence on those two characters, though the Brisbane version got much handsome ones.

Anyway, looking forward to this film in August. I couldn't help but respecting Tommy Murphy as such a young successful playwright, hoping he could have more work on big screen as well.