The first serious movie to deal with HIV, "Les nuits fauves" felt like a Joe Frazier hook when it came out in 1992. Gone are all the pitiful sentimental demonstrations of future films like "Philadelphia" . In fact, AIDS is merely the backdrop of the film. Cyril Collard never asks for pity. The movie is both a confession and an hymn to life. It doesn't try to moralize the audience, although some spectators were concerned about the "message" such a film might send. You have to remember that the events described in LNF take place in 1986, when the concept of HIV and AIDS were still abstract and to be defined. Collard himself said in a 1992 interview that the irresponsability of his character, Jean, having unprotected sex although aware he is infected, would be rightly considered criminal by now. The virus serves as a driving force for a main character that is learning to love, opening himself to others, to the world. But to reach the light, you must first go through the darkness and the task is not an easy one to witness. LNF demands a lot on the viewer, asking him to let go of his preconceive ideas and ideals. Very much influenced by his mentor Maurice Pialat, Collard makes a daring film, one which you could never imagine coming from the all too clean world of Hollywood film making. Here, energy comes first, technical aspects of movie making later. Therefore life, real life, shines through. "Les nuits fauves" is a force to be reckon with. An unsettling experience I will never forget.
