The Gift

Because this topic has a lot of urban legend surrounding it, the film was an excellent way to get information out. It not only educated people who were clueless about bug chasing but provided faces to phenomenon that was previously anonymous. I was impressed at the depth of information that was presented. Researching the topic myself, I knew the information on chasing was few and far between. There is a lot of speculation and stories but not a lot of concrete facts. This documentary takes the topic from urban legend and begins to ask the questions that need to be addressed. The film also presents all sides of the issue which was refreshing. It was not a single point of view but rather a montage of opinions. This leaves it open for interpretation and for the viewer to formulate his or her own opinions. I found I was connecting with the people in the documentary and could rationalize why they chose to seek out HIV. Before watching the documentary I thought the idea of bug chasing was completely insane but actually hearing people discuss the topic, made me realize that it wasn't that far fetched of an idea and hearing their reasonings made my heart go out to them.