Rating: 
Summary: Inspiring and, great performances!
Review: This movie shows the reality of a cruel world but full of hope and future. The fight against AIDS should not stop never. I love the performances of all cast. The theme and the way it was presented was very professional and truely. I like this movie a lot. I cry every time I see it because is so emotional and inspiring.
Rating:
Summary: Inspiring and, great performances!
Review: When I saw this movie for the first time I was 16 years old. It was shocking to me to realize the fact of been so close to the death because of AIDS. I cried like a child with the movie and understood how society is so cruel and cold with other people just because they think or act different. This movie shows the reality of life in it's maximum expression. I've seen this movie like 10 times and always make me cry, think and smile of happiness for those who are just... HUMANS like everybody, else!
Rating:
Summary: A good start.
Review: "This is the essence of discrimination: Formulating opinions about others not based on their individual merits, but rather on their membership in a group with assumed characteristics." (School Board of Nassau County v. Arline, 480 U.S. 273 (1987) (Brennan, J.), on remand, 692 F. Supp. 1286 (M.D. Fla. 1988)). This rule, reaffirmed by the landmark Supreme Court decision which, over the dissent of Chief Justice Rehnquist and Justice Scalia, first recognized the infection with a contagious disease (tuberculosis) as an actionable handicap under federal law, forms the initial bond between star litigator Andrew Beckett (Tom Hanks) and ambulance chaser Joe Miller (Denzel Washington), the unlikely team at the center of this movie. Because through these words, black attorney Miller begins to realize that his colleague Beckett faces a handicap which, in essence, is not so different from that confronted by many of his fellow African Americans. And because this is an incredibly effectively scripted Hollywood movie, we, the audience, easily get the point as well; even if we're white, and even if we're not gay and/or suffering from AIDS like Beckett.Of course, the insidiousness of the AIDS virus places those afflicted with it in a class of their own, and while the movie spares its viewers the pictures of some of the virus's most graphic effects, it does go to considerable length to show the physical decline associated with it - not only in the person of Beckett himself, for whose role Hanks literally almost starved himself. Some of the patients surrounding him in the movie's earlier emergency room scenes really were AIDS patients, whom Hanks had approached when preparing for the movie, and who had subsequently agreed to participate; and as Hanks emphasized during an appearance in Bravo TV's "Inside the Actors' Studio," not all of them are still alive. - Denzel Washington's appropriately named Joe Miller, middle class everyman in everything but the color of his skin (one of the movie's obvious bows to political correctness), displays an attitude uncomfortably familiar to many of us; shunning gays in general and the HIV-infected Beckett in particular, out of a mixture of ignorance about AIDS, prejudice against those suffering from it, and prejudice against gays. Both Hanks and Washington give strikingly emotional, profound performances that rank among the best in their respective careers - Hanks deservedly won both the Oscar and the Golden Globe for his portrayal of Beckett, but Washington unfairly wasn't even nominated for either. Yet, neither of them would have been able to shine as much as they do without their exceptional supporting cast; to name just two, Jason Robards, commanding as ever as Beckett's homophobic former boss (and role model!), and Antonio Banderas as his devoted lover. By the time of "Philadelphia"'s release, some of the early myths about AIDS had begun to disappear, and the yearly growing numbers of newly infected patients had brought it out of its erstwhile obscurity as "the gay plague." But indepth knowledge was still far from widespread, and therefore the movie not only brought awareness to the disease in general, but also made a couple of important points, from educating the public about the disease's method of transmission to emphasizing that it is by no means limited to gays and can even be contracted in something as life-affirming as a blood transfusion. (Indeed, several European countries were rocked by transfusion-related AIDS scandals right around the time of the movie's release). One of "Philadelphia"'s most quietly powerful scenes is the testimony of a female witness who was infected by just such a transfusion, and who emphasizes that having AIDS is not a matter of sin or morality: "I don't consider myself any different from anyone else with this disease. I'm not guilty, I'm not innocent, I'm just trying to survive," she responds when asked to confirm that in her case "there was no behavior on [her] part" involved and contracting AIDS was something she was "unable to avoid." - Moreover, four years before Ellen DeGeneres rocked the showboat with a kiss during an episode of her sitcom, and Kevin Kline and Magnum macho Tom Selleck locked lips in "In and Out" (the screenplay of which was inspired by Hanks's Oscar acceptance speech for "Philadelphia"), it was by no means a given that a movie would get away with letting Hanks and Banderas exchange acts of tenderness from caresses and kisses on the hand to a slow dance at a gay party. Given "Philadelphia"'s fundamental message and the memorable performances of its protagonists, it is a pity that the movie doesn't entirely avoid Hollywood pitfalls, such as its soggy ending with grease literally dripping off the screen and the undeniable taste of a sugar-coated afterthought, transmitting the message that even dying of AIDS is really not so terrible, at least for the surviving family who can still unite around the television set and wallow in their memories of their lost loved one. And while I do buy Joe Miller's transformation from a (somewhat stereotypical) homophobic male to a reluctant supporter of gay rights, I don't really see why Beckett suddenly assumes a cliche gay look the second he has been fired; not to mention that I suspect not everybody in his situation would have enjoyed such overwhelming support from his family. But ultimately, it is the movie's overarching message that counts. "Ain't no angel gonna greet me; it's just you and I my friend ... and my clothes don't fit me no more: I walked a thousand miles just to slip this skin," sings Bruce Springsteen, the movie's other Oscar winner, in "Philadelphia"'s title song. And Justice Brennan wrote in the Supreme Court's Arline decision that in amending federal law, Congress was motivated by "discrimination stemming not only from simple prejudice, but also from archaic attitudes and laws." This movie goes a long way in dispelling such attitudes. It alone isn't enough - but it is, as Andrew Beckett jokes about the 1000 lawyers chained together at the bottom of the ocean, a good start.
Rating: 
Summary: INSULTING TO THOSE WHO DIED
Review: THIS MOVIE IS AN INSULT TO EVERYBODY WHO DIED AND TO EVERYONE WHO LOST A LOVED ONE.
Rating:
Summary: A Very Special Film
Review: I find it hard to sit through this movie in it entirety when it's shown on television. It is so raw and heartfelt. (Yes, Tom Hanks and the rest of the cast are THAT good!). Still, I rank this as one of the best films made in the latter part of the 20th century. Really a must-see for all the reasons that make movies worthwhile.
Rating:
Summary: Can't go wrong
Review: How could this only get a couple Academy Award Nomination??? It's a travesty. Superb screenplay. Phenomenal directing. Dynamite score and original songs from Neil Young and The Boss. I think Neil's is better. Denzel was just as worthy of a supporting actor Oscar as Tom Hanks was with his. This is just a great film and the ending is so touching and deep and personal. Everyone has got to love this movie. Antonio has a nice small role, but even he took it on so well. Tom Hanks turns in one of the best performances of all time.
Rating:
Summary: an all time favorite
Review: Joe Miller made me think how I am, Andy's parents' made me know how I should be. A wonderful film depicting a terrible situation with great dignity, tenderness, respect. One suffers throughout the movie as a close friend to Andy and aspires to be loved with the intensity, magic and depth with which Andy and Miguel love each other. Great movie!
Rating: 
Summary: Touching human story
Review: Philadelphia deals with an AIDS-stricken homosexual attorney, played by Tom Hanks, who brings a wrongful-dismissal suit against the firm that fired him. It's a wonderfully sympathetic tale that did wonders in increasing understanding of people suffering from AIDS in the early 90s, and a magnificent display of acting by Hanks and Denzel Washington. The film shows just how easy it is for society to dismiss someone at a time of greatest need, and how wrong it is to do that. The film, along with Bruce Springsteen's title song, has aged well in the intervening years and remains relevant today.
Rating:
Summary: A very human story behind the courtroom drama
Review: This 1993 film was the first major Hollywood movie with big name stars to deal with the topic of AIDS. As of now, with the exception of some independent films as well as some programs on television, it is the only one I know of. I don't know how it did at the box office but it did win a lot of awards and recognition, especially for Tom Hanks, who won an Academy Award for best actor. Cast in the role of a lawyer in a prestigious Philadelphia law firm who is fired because he has AIDS, Hanks really took on the role wholeheartedly. He must have dieted to starvation because his weight loss is quite noticeable and with the aid of good makeup, we see his physical appearance change before our eyes. Denzel Washington is cast as a lawyer too, but he works independently, taking on small cases of personal injury, even advertising his services on television. He's happily married with a wife and small baby and hates homosexuals. However, in spite of his feelings, he takes on Hanks' case, never completely giving up his negative feelings towards gays, but yet understanding his client's very human feelings about wanting to live. Joanne Woodward is cast as Hanks' mother and, even though her role is small, there are some very moving moments between them. Jason Robards is the partner in the law firm who expresses disgust at the fact that Hanks had the nerve to bring AIDS right into their office. Mary Steenburgen is the attorney for the law firm and she does an excellent job of very clearly bringing out some of the legal issues. And Antonio Bandaras is cast as Hanks' partner who has the unpleasant tasks of helping Hanks with his treatments. The whole cast does an excellent job. Every person seemed absolutely real under Jonathan Demme's very capable direction. Mostly the film involved itself with the legal issues and this kept it from being maudlin. However, there was no way it could help bringing out the very human story behind the courtroom drama. It's a story that had to be told to the world. And "Philadelphia" does an excellent job of doing just that. Recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant Hanks and Washington
Review: Before "Forest Gump" Tom Hanks won an Oscar as the protagonist of this important film - a lwayer whose whole world is shaken to the core via the death sentence that was AIDS. Initmate, prophetic and gritty all at once, "Philadelphia" served to put a human face on the epidemic, while Hanks especially went the extra mile to literally embody his character in a way not fully realized on camera since Rbert DiNiro's superb turn in "Raging Bull." Washington - the other dual-Oscar winner - shines as well in a beautifully poised role as his advocate and attorney. An important film that resonates to this day.
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