How to Survive a Plague should be required viewing for everyone, even people who normally aren't that into documentaries. It chronicles the AIDS crisis in New York City through the eyes of gay advocacy groups, specifically ACT UP. In those days, no one who had any power was willing to acknowledge the disease, let alone set aside funding for research, and these people fought for studies and experimental treatments because their lives depended on it and nobody was going to do it for them. The film features an insane amount of archival footage from meetings and even just casual conversations caught on tape that really capture the fire and vibrancy of the moment. Present day testimony from survivors and former activists gives an added poignancy as they provide insight into the small victories and devastating losses of a time when their friends and lovers were dropping like flies and no one was willing to talk about it. You might like How to Survive a Plague if: you liked Dallas Buyers Club, The Normal Heart, and want to spend the next few days sobbing into a pillow because of how tragic and beautiful this documentary is.