We start the documentary by knowing that Gemmel and Tim does in 2017 and 2019 respectively. They were both young, gay, Black men who lived in the West Hollywood area of Los Angeles, and whose paths crossed with a man named Ed Buck. Buck is a well-known donor to the Democratic Party who would invite young Black men to his apartment and give them drugs. Gemmel and Tim went to Buck’s apartment numerous times, and they both died there from lethal drugs overdoses. Gemmel and Tim are basketball players, ballroom enthusiasts, friends, hikers, and more. This documentary ensures that their stories are more than the circumstances of their deaths. Interviews with friends and family members seek to give real personalities to these men, and it succeeds admirably. Journal entries are read, and friends choke up at the memories of these men and what they went through. They were more than just troubled drug addicts. They were men who were cared for by people who fought tirelessly to bring Buck to justice. Even after Gemmel’s death, Buck was allowed to continue his habit of inviting young men of color to his apartment unabated until his September 2019 arrest. In addition to being a cautionary tale about drug abuse, this is also a story of white privilege, racism and homophobia. This documentary is about the tireless efforts pit in by his friends and family and community to get these men the justice they deserved.
Ed Buck is currently serving time in federal prison for his crimes, but the documentary rightly doesn't focus on him. Instead it examines what makes Gemmel and Tim such unique humans in the West Hollywood community. Through intimate recollections of their lost friends, each interviewee exposes their own personal journey in dealing with grief and this is what makes this film extremely powerful. Using stunning hand drawn animation, the makers bring life and color to the memories of Gemmel and Tim in a way that celebrates these men and the multitudes they contained. While the filmmakers had access to some actual footage of Gemmel and Tim, the animations allow the audience to truly memorialize the lives of these men. The film organically shifts from celebrating chosen families, to the grieving process, to activism, all while keeping these men at the forefront. The survivors bravely sharing their stories about dancing with the devil helped finally bring justice for those no longer alive to share their testimony. This country's justice systems needs to change. These two young men should not have died. Ed Buck took that privilege away, but this extremely well made documentary will hopefully take their legacy alive and also teach men within the LGBT+ community how and why to stay away from the evils of drugs especially meth. (7/10)
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