Review of We Were Here (2011) by Mikael K — 19 Oct 2011

Sometimes, very rarely, you see a film that leaves you without words to the point where itâ(TM)s almost impossible to process what youâ(TM)ve seen. Documentary âWe Were Hereâ? is one of such experiences for me. Itâ(TM)s an honest and simple film about the onset, peak and current state of the AIDS epidemic in San Francisco, told by some of the very few survivors who were there when the tragedy began. There are no attempts at cheap dramatics, no manipulative music, only real people and their real memories and experiences edited together with news footage from across the years.

When it comes to facts, this documentary doesnâ(TM)t really offer anything new, but it makes it all feel so much more real. âWe Were Hereâ? is about a tragedy we who werenâ(TM)t there can never understand fully, but seeing this film will make you understand it a little bit better. A tragedy that hits a relatively small and accepting community, almost eradicating all of the members in a very short period of time. The government turns a blind eye, politicians say itâ(TM)s all a good thing and the common opinion seems to be that all that endless loss and suffering is indeed completely deserved. This is a unique case in recent western history, reminding us about the human capacity for hate and dehumanization, which is of course balanced by the stories of ultimate altruism and compassion of those who were there to help.

The film also makes you think of the AIDS situation in Africa, where many countries have already lost the battle. And it makes you think about the HIV statistics in the western world which show an unfathomable conscious carelessness re-emerging both in the gay and the straight communities. Conscious carelessness which will most probably result in many- compared to the San Francisco epidemic delayed but nevertheless devastating- tragedies in years to come.