''Daybreak'' is a 1993 American

sci-fi Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

thriller

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...

written and directed by Stephen Tolkin, based on the 1987

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

play ''Beirut'' by

Alan Bowne Alan Bowne (1945–1989) was an American playwright and author. He was a member of the New Dramatists. He wrote a number of plays including ''Beirut'', ''Forty-Deuce'', ''Sharon and Billy'', and ''The Beany and Cecil Show'', many of which are a ...

. It stars

Moira Kelly Moira Kelly (born March 6, 1968) is an American actress. She is known for portraying Kate Moseley in the 1992 film '' The Cutting Edge'' as well as single mother Karen Roe on the teen drama '' One Tree Hill''. She is also known for playing the ...

, Cuba Gooding Jr.,

Martha Plimpton Martha Plimpton (born November 16, 1970) is an American actress and member of the Carradine family. She started her career as a teen actress in film before transitioning to adult roles on stage and screen. She has received several awards includ ...

, and

Omar Epps Omar Hashim Epps (born July 20, 1973) is an American actor, rapper, and producer. Epps's film roles include ''Juice (1992 film), Juice'', ''Higher Learning'', ''The Wood'', ''In Too Deep (1999 film), In Too Deep'', and ''Love & Basketball''. His ...

, and aired on

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

on May 8, 1993.

Plot

The film is set in the near future in a more

authoritarian Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in democracy, separation of powers, civil liberties, and ...

United States. It deals with the social persecution and criminalization of people who are infected with a

sexually transmitted infection A sexually transmitted infection (STI), also referred to as a sexually transmitted disease (STD) and the older term venereal disease (VD), is an infection that is Transmission (medicine), spread by Human sexual activity, sexual activity, e ...

similar to

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...

. Those who test positive for the disease are forcibly placed into

quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals, and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have bee ...

camps. In the quarantine camps they are tattooed with a ''P'' by the authorities to indicate their positive status and shot if they try to escape. The quarantine camps are dilapidated places where patients are left to die without care or contact with the outside world. Blue is a young woman who earns a living scavenging metal in the city. She goes with a friend who wants to be tested to a Helping Hand clinic. The clinic has the sinister slogan "Making your hard choices easier". Outside the clinic they are given a card warning them against getting tested there. The card demands "Why is sickness a crime? Why is hospital a prison? Why does the helping hand hold a gun?". Blue is disturbed by this warning and meets an activist in the resistance called Torch. The resistance works to prevent the quarantine of those who are positive. They arrange testing outside the official system so that they will not be quarantined. They rescue people being held by the Helping Hand clinic in order to give them medicine, care, and understanding. They distribute condoms and clean needles to help prevent the spread of the disease. This is contrasted with government advertisements for the Helping Hand clinics that threaten "The only way is not to play". A relationship develops between Blue and Torch and it is revealed that Torch is positive. Torch is arrested because of his activism and when the police discover that he is positive they send him to quarantine. Blue sneaks into the quarantine in order to see Torch. Blue wants to be infected by Torch so that they can live together inside the quarantine camp, but Torch is reluctant to infect Blue. In the end she escapes at his urging and continues the fight on the outside.

Cast

as "Blue" * Cuba Gooding Jr. as "Torch" *

as Laurie *

as Hunter *

Alice Drummond Alice Elizabeth Drummond (née Ruyter, May 21, 1928 – November 30, 2016) was an American actress. A veteran Off-Broadway performer, she was nominated in 1970 for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her performance as Mrs ...

as Anna * Amir Williams as Willie *

David Eigenberg David Eigenberg (born May 17, 1964) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Steve Brady on the HBO series ''Sex and the City'' and its revival series '' And Just Like That...'' and as Firefighter/Lieutenant/Captain Christopher Herrma ...

as "Bucky" *

John Cameron Mitchell John Cameron Mitchell (born April 21, 1963) is an American actor, playwright, screenwriter, singer, songwriter, producer and director. He is known as the writer, director and star of the 2001 film ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch (film), Hedwig and t ...

as Lennie *

Willie Garson William Garson Paszamant (February 20, 1964September 21, 2021) was an American actor. He appeared in over 75 films and more than 300 TV episodes. He was known for playing Stanford Blatch on the series ''Sex and the City'', in the related films ...

as Simon * Mark Boone Jr. as Quarantine Guard * Deirdre O'Connell as Mom *

Jon Seda Jon Seda (born October 14, 1970) is an American actor. Seda was an amateur boxer who auditioned for and was given a role in the 1992 boxing film ''Gladiator''. He played the role of Chris Pérez alongside Jennifer Lopez in the movie ''Selena'', ...

as Payne * Phil Parolisi as Russell * Paul Butler as Truck Driver * Alix Koromzay as Woman In Quarantine *

Nick Chinlund Zareh Nicholas Chinlund (born November 18) is an American actor and voice actor in television, film, and video games. Personal life Zareh Nicholas Chinlund was born in New York City on November 18. Career Chinlund performed on ''General Hospit ...

as Commander *

Phil Hartman Philip Edward Hartman (; September 24, 1948 – May 28, 1998) was a Canadian-American comedian, actor, screenwriter and graphic designer. Hartman was born in Brantford, Ontario, and his family moved to the United States when he w ...

as Man In Abstinence Commercial * John Savage as The President

Production

Filming took place in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, including

Lower Manhattan Lower Manhattan, also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York City, is the southernmost part of the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The neighborhood is History of New York City, the historical birthplace o ...

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, 0106676 1993 television films 1993 films 1993 science fiction films 1993 thriller films 1990s American films 1990s dystopian films 1990s English-language films 1990s political thriller films 1990s science fiction thriller films American dystopian films American films based on plays American political thriller films American science fiction television films American science fiction thriller films American thriller television films English-language science fiction thriller films Films scored by Michel Colombier Films set in the future Films set in the United States Films shot in New York City Films with screenplays by Stephen Tolkin HBO Films films HIV/AIDS in American films HIV/AIDS in television Television films based on plays