Three Months (2022)

Sometimes the world, or the queer world, acts like we live in a post-HIV world, and Three Months reminded me that for people living with HIV, especially queer people, the fact that HIV may no longer be a death sentence, the world still treats positive people differently. There is a moment, amongst the film's relentless sarcasm, when Sivan pauses for a moment, thinking about waiting for his test results and his future with finding someone to be with and says "what if that is harder for me now?"

Writer/director Frieder does punctuate his film with a lot of jokes. Sivan's character is rather standard in his reliance on humour as a defence mechanism. But it is in those moments when he stops joking that the film finds its true moments. Three Months is funny and Sivan has a very charismatic presence on the screen. But again it is in moments of weakness that the film really comes alive. 

Louis Gossett Jr. and Ellen Burstyn bring a sense of gravitas to the film even when it's trying to be irreverent. And the chemistry between Kalra and Sivan is just so delightfully sweet. There is something remarkable about how the film manages to embrace sex positivity while also telling such a chaste love story.  

Three Months often feels like its parts shouldn't add up to what a lovely, joyful movie it ends up being. But there are always these moments that come up in the film that just hit so good and so hard. And recognize that the world is still living with HIV and all the ramifications of that, from the stigma to the isolation to the health issues. Three Months was just lovely and powerful, and pretty funny as well. 

Three Months

Starring: Troye Sivan, Viveik Kalra, Brianne Tju, Javier Muñoz, Judy Greer, Louis Gossett Jr., Ellen Burstyn

Writer/Director: Jared Frieder