in 1984, I was 10. I remember the fear of everyday people, but by then we knew it was only by sex or drug users. I was in a religious private school & that the adults saying God will give "them" mercy by killing them quick. no one knew who to treat patients, just let them wither. glad that medicine has advanced.

The film is a tough, vital lesson in love, valor and compassion.

Gary Goldstein

Los Angeles Times

Haggis and Krauss’s desire to use the ward as a vehicle to tell a much larger and more complex story makes sense. Yet it ultimately takes away from the truly remarkable story they have to tell, a story that may actually be more complex than matters of government policy and public opinion.

Mark Feeney

Boston Globe

Despite a nagging tendency to milk sentiment from wrenching subject matter that requires no manipulation, the film is notable for its admirably inclusive perspective.

David Rooney

The Hollywood Reporter