Philadelphia
Published May 21, 2022
Film info
- Title Philadelphia
- Director Jonathan Demme
- Year 1993
- Run time 2hrs 6m
- Genre Drama
- Tagline No one would take on his case... until one man was willing to take on the system
Philadelphia stars Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington as two competing lawyers who join forces to sue a prestigious law firm for AIDS discrimination. And as their unlikely friendship develops, their courage overcomes the prejudice and corruption of their powerful adversaries.
Live blog
| Time | Comment |
|---|---|
| 3:54 | You’ve got to have a special song to basically start a movie with a full music video. |
| 10:14 | That’s a lot of people in suits just hanging around the office after 10pm. Go home! |
| 14:29 | “I called in sick for four days, now they’re gonna think I was taking a cruise.” |
| 20:31 | I love that she just had the baby and still has to sort the camera out for him. |
| 25:22 | Love the magic ‘make windows opaque’ button. |
| 34:37 | “We do have a private research room available.” GRRR. |
| 46:06 | What an incredible family. |
| 48:36 | I want to cheer for Mary because I love her, but she’s on the bad side! |
| 59:17 | You can’t write discrimination off as a misunderstanding. |
| 1:07:25 | “With all due respect, we don’t live in this courtroom, do we?” |
| 1:13:52 | Law suit is brilliantly rubbish. |
| 1:18:48 | “I am not that familiar with opera.” Same. |
| 1:30:07 | The make up and stuff on Tom Hanks is brilliant. |
| 1:40:42 | Major League Ball Club? |
| 1:47:21 | 4 million!! |
Thoughts
I’ve seen this before but not for a while, and having had a run of very bad films, was keen for a certified winner. This is that film. It’s emotional and moving and sad, enraging and enlightening in equal measure. Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington are two powerhouses by themselves, so put them together and it’s an incredible on-screen partnership.
It’s perhaps not such a groundbreaking film watching it now as it may have been at the time, having seen more recent hardhitting dramas of the same sort of period. But you have to think back to the time this film was released into and that it was doing a great job of raising awareness in a period that really needed it.
Plus… that song. Man.
Rating: 5 / 5