UPDATE (3/11/25): Notification came today that the one loanable 35mm print of Safe is damaged beyond repair and has been retired as of just a few days ago. Lacking other options, we will be screening the movie from a Blu-ray source.

(Todd Haynes, 1995, USA, 1 hour 59 minutes)

Todd Haynes (Carol, May December) didn’t waste any time in showing he was one of America’s best and most vital young filmmakers with his first three features when he appeared on the scene in the late 80s and early 90s: rights-issues hot potato Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story (told exclusively with Barbie dolls and incredibly effective), Poison, and then Safe, his first of now five collaborations with actress Julianne Moore. Here Moore plays suburban housewife Carol White who seems to have severe allergic reactions to everyday chemicals and is subsequently diagnosed with an immunity disorder, drawing clear parallels with the AIDS crisis.