PLOT: In NYC circa the late eighties, Jimmy George (Rami Malek), a charismatic actor, experiences what will likely be a brief reprieve of good health after nearly dying from an AIDS-related infection.
REVIEW: It’s easy for modern audiences to forget that the AIDS epidemic, at its height (from the mid-eighties to the early nineties), had a catastrophic impact on a whole generation of gay men, with conservative estimates stating that something like 1 in 15 gay men died from it in North America alone, while infection rates ranged anywhere from 25-40% among gay communities in major urban centres. That includes New York City, where Ira Sachs’ The Man I Love is set.
While hardly the first movie about the AIDS crisis, Sachs’ film is unusual in how laser-focused it is on one man’s experience and the impact it has on those around him. Rami Malek’s Jimmy George is far from a perfect man. Everyone wants to either be Jimmy or be with him, and his narcissism and recklessness aren’t played down. While engaged in a long-term relationship with his loving partner, Dennis (Tom Sturridge), who nursed him through his illness and manages the cocktail of medications he takes, Jimmy isn’t faithful — even with his illness a fact of life, albeit one he tries to forget as much as he can.
When a young man named Vincent (Lucas Ford) moves into their apartment building, the two begin an affair that’s reckless in more ways than one. For one thing, it happens right under Dennis’ nose, but it also endangers Vincent’s health, with him refusing to heed anyone’s warnings about potentially becoming infected — not his roommate (Maisy Stella), nor even Dennis himself, who tries to level with him about how AIDS is devastating the community. Vincent is naive enough to think it’s destiny, living in a fantasy world where AIDS will never touch them.
As Jimmy, Rami Malek delivers the performance of his career. While his Oscar win for Bohemian Rhapsody was not without controversy, the power of his acting here can’t be denied. In a just world, he’d be an Oscar contender this year. Malek utterly vanishes into the part, with Jimmy unlike any character he’s ever played before. Typically, Malek has been known for portraying people somewhat ill at ease in their own skin, from his lead role on Mr. Robot to Freddie Mercury — despite the latter’s on-stage flamboyance. Jimmy George is something else entirely, with him ultra-confident — to a fault — and so charismatic he becomes the north star everyone in his neighbourhood gathers around.
The film follows Jimmy as he struggles to learn the leading role he’s preparing to play in his underground theatre company, with him suddenly unable to memorize lines that once came easily to him. While he looks healthy, something is happening to Jimmy’s mental state, prompting one last reckless stab at life, which includes his ill-advised relationship with Vincent. Jimmy is unapologetically narcissistic — not the first such character in an Ira Sachs film, as seen in his French drama Passages. Yet what makes this different is that there’s no moralizing. There are no tearful scenes of betrayal, with everyone in his orbit having long ago learned to accept him as he is — including Dennis, with Sturridge delivering a deeply empathetic, honest performance.
While it’s very much Malek’s show, the film boasts a strong supporting cast, with Rebecca Hall (a Sachs regular) especially noteworthy as Jimmy’s adoring sister, while Ebon Moss-Bachrach is unexpectedly touching as her supportive, kindly husband. What makes The Man I Love such a tragic film are the scenes depicting the sense of community around Jimmy, such as a party where everyone takes turns singing, with even Moss-Bachrach’s Gene joining in. It’s moments like these that drive home the devastating impact AIDS had on the community and the families involved — the scene says a lot without overtly saying anything at all.
But the movie also has one show-stopping scene that drew audible gasps during the press screening I attended at Cannes, with Malek — as Jimmy — delivering an incredible rendition of the folk-rock classic “What Have They Done to My Song Ma” on acoustic guitar during a sequence set at his parents’ wedding anniversary party. Somehow, he distills all of Jimmy’s struggle with mortality and rage at being cut down in his prime into this one performance.
Hopefully, the reaction out of Cannes secures Sachs’ film heavyweight North American distribution, as it would be a shame if Malek’s performance went unrecognized. He delivers a touching portrayal of a deeply imperfect man coming face to face with a staggeringly cruel fate he can’t run away from.
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