When you think of the Writer/Activist Larry Kramer, the words “toughness,” “persistence” and “warrior” come to mind. The lush sounds of Roxy Music? Probably not. However, the excellent HBO adaptation of his play The Normal Heart, which recently won the Emmy for best Television Movie, might change that.
In a film full of memorable, enraged speeches, perhaps the most unforgettable moment is a scene with no dialogue. Mark Ruffalo portrays Ned, the surrogate for Kramer, and Matt Bomer is his boyfriend Felix. They’re driving in a convertible through the country, surrounded by sand dunes, on the way to their beach house. Life seems perfect.
The idyllic image is accompanied by Roxy Music’s “More Than This,” which seems fitting. It came out in 1982, when this sequence takes place. Plus, what couple wouldn’t want to have Roxy Music shadowing them?
Deep in the heart of Roxy Music’s sensual elegance though, is a sadness that Director Ryan Murphy caught on to, as Roxy often sounds like Friday night but with a Sunday afternoon aftertaste. He brilliantly uses the song as subtext, showing how music can transform even the most banal of scenes. Its inclusion transforms what would normally be just people in a car into a meditation on mortality. “More Than This” is so stunningly beautiful, it can be easy to forget that the song is about an impermanent relationship. It’s even there in the chorus, “More than this – there is nothing.”
Felix has AIDS, and those words sum up what’s coming for him and others afflicted with this horrific disease, in addition to the pain and aguish their loved one’s will go through taking care of them. The presence of death is felt, although instead of wearing a black shroud and gripping a scythe, the Grim Reaper looks like Bryan Ferry from the cover of Another Time, Another Place, wearing a white tuxedo and looking solemnly debonair, while holding a cigarette.
As well-written and performed as the many speeches are, this moment is the most powerful because Murphy and Kramer are showing us what would soon be lost. This portrait of two people in the prime of life is actually just the prelude to a long, tortured goodbye.
Music can have that kind of effect. Especially Roxy Music.