AustLit

It’s been six years since the passing of the marriage equality act, and 43 years since the decriminalization of homosexuality in Victoria (1980). With the teaching of Queer sexual education, with programs like Safe Schools, and national access to PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) and PEP (post-exposure), it is hard for today’s Queer youth to imagine the dangerous, devasting HIV/AIDS epidemic that faced gay men in Australia, and around the world in the 1980s and ‘90s. Neil Armfield’s Australian Drama Holding the Man (2015) is based on Timothy Conigrave’s memoir of the same title. Conigrave completed the memoir on his death bed, and it was published just months after his 1994 AIDs-related death. The Queer-romance film authentically portrays Australia’s 1970s and the navigation of a schoolboy romance and homosexual relationship, disrupted by the 1980s HIV crisis. The movie not only embraces gay identity but also captures the warmth amidst the frightening challenges faced by the gay community, including widespread gay bashings, public outings, and family disownments. By blending biographical and romance genre conventions, Holding the Man goes beyond storytelling; it becomes a powerful tribute to the resilience of Queer Australia during a tumultuous era, shedding light on impactful civil rights movements such as the Campaign Against Moral Persecution (CAMP Inc). Most importantly, it stands as a testament to the enduring strength of same-sex love, defiantly flourishing amidst Australia’s authoritarian oppression.' (Introduction)