"The Event" is mystery story set in Manhattan's Chelsea district, an intense relationship drama about a series of unexplained deaths that occurs among the gay community. It tells the story of Matt Shapiro (Don McKellar) who has died in Manhattan, resulting in an aborted 911 call. Assistant District Attorney Nicole "Nick" DeVivo (Parker Posey) investigates the suspicious suicide, and interviews Matt's friends and family to piece together a portrait of Matt's life and finally his death. Matt's death is the latest in what could be a string of "assisted" suicides, and Nick's suspicions lead her to Matt's best friend, Brian (Brent Carver), who runs an AIDS hospice. Through her conversations with Brian, some of Matt's other friends, the man's mother (Olympia Dukakis), and younger sister Dana (Sarah Polley), Nick is able to piece together Matt's life after he was stricken with the illness. It is the man's older sister, the ostracized Gaby (Joanna P. Adler), who hints to Nick that her brother may have had some help. Flashbacks reconstruct the man's life and his relationships with friends and family. Nick believes that his death may have been the result of assisted suicide, which is against the law, even for victims of AIDS. When the true circumstances of his death are revealed, they prove to be far less important than how he lived, loved, and was loved.
The title of the film refers to the night when Matt died. His friends and family gather at his apartment to hold a farewell party, and at the end of the evening's festivities, with loved ones by his side, Matt's life will presumably reach a peaceful end. This melodrama begins as a powerful film with good character development, but becomes overly sentimental, obviously trying to manipulate our emotions. Christophe Beck composed the incidental music, and Thom Fitzgerald wrote the screenplay and directed.
The title of the film refers to the night when Matt died. His friends and family gather at his apartment to hold a farewell party, and at the end of the evening's festivities, with loved ones by his side, Matt's life will presumably reach a peaceful end. This melodrama begins as a powerful film with good character development, but becomes overly sentimental, obviously trying to manipulate our emotions. Christophe Beck composed the incidental music, and Thom Fitzgerald wrote the screenplay and directed.
