Milk
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Movie Reviews of Milk
Movie Review: A Splendid and Important Film
Summary: 5 Stars
MILK is one of the more powerful bio-epics produced by Hollywood. Harvey Milk, the man honored by this superbly crafted film by writer Dustin Lance Black and directed by Gus Van Sant, is brought to life by Sean Penn in his most skilled performance of his fine career. Not only is this movie an homage to Harvey Milk, but it is also a shaking reminder of the ferocious ongoing battle for Civil Rights. Few viewers will come away from this film untouched.
The life of gay activist Harvey Milk is well known, as is his assassination as he finally reached a platform where his voice could be heard. Black and Van Zant have wisely started the story with some black and white footage of the abuse of the gay population across the country and then ease into the biography by showing us Milk in New York, approaching his 40th birthday and discovering Scott Smith (James Franco) as the beginning of not only a tender partnership but also a change in Milk's drive to make a difference. The climb to importance from his migration to Castro Street in San Francisco and the 'recruiting' of his clan (Emile Hirsch as Cleve Jones et al) and the struggles he faced in gaining acceptance of a minority group is the stuff of legends.
Penn is extraordinary, but Franco, Hirsch, Josh Brolin as Milk's assassin, and Diego Luna as the kinky Jack Lira turn in excellent performances. Van Zant is unafraid to show the tenderness among his characters: it is satisfying to see prominent male actors take on roles that include same sex intimacy. This is a film that deserves to enter the archives as one of the 'greats.' Highly recommended. Grady Harp, March 09
Movie Review: No matter your sexuality--this is a powerful, engaging film.
Summary: 5 Stars
Gus Van Sant's MILK is a phenomenal film. It chronicles the career of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay politician, and his struggle and triumph against bigotry. The script, by Dustin Lance Black, is one of the best in recent years; Black earned his Oscar and all the acclaim he's garnered. Van Sant's directing is something to behold; the film is a seamless flow of "archival" footage and "new" footage, interlaced to tell the story of the struggle.
It is the acting, though, that really ropes in the viewer. Sean Penn won a Best Acting Oscar for his portrayal of Milk, and he earned it; he sinks into his role, disappearing behind Milk's persona, creating an iconic film character, a modern day Atticus Finch. Josh Brolin, as Milk's political adversary (and eventual assassin) Dan White, turns in another great performance; he exudes a sense of unease and self-loathing, and would surely have been a shoe-in for Best Supporting Actor had it not been for the late Heath Ledger's iconic performance in THE DARK KNIGHT. James Franco shows yet again that he is a genuine talent; following a string of second- and third- rate roles, he showed his talent in PINEAPPLE EXPRESS, and now here again, in a moving, powerful performance. The other primary supporting roles--from Emile Hirsch, Alison Pill, and Diego Luna specifically--are all well cast.
MILK is a movie for our times. It is powerful, persuasive, emotional, funny, romantic, and entertaining; in other words, it's everything a film could hope to be. Watch it and be moved. Watch it and learn something about true humanity.
Movie Review: Fantastic cinema: drink this, whether or not you're lactose intolerant
Summary: 5 Stars
On the surface, a political work that could have been overbearingly cold, polemic and self-important, but Gus Van Sant's direction is marked by his restrained passion and sensitivity towards the difficult issues at hand and especially in regards to Harvey Milk, whom Van Sant speaks for himself. Milk's persona, then, is personalized not as a revered martyr but as a living, breathing person. The character's struggles and hardships to bring equal treatment for gays and lesbians are emphasized through Van Sant's admirable humanistic treatment. There are some cheeky, comical and aloof scenes, especially the ones that do not skim through the naked fit body of James Franco, and the lens view them with a sneaky and cheeky voyeuristic glances, but that is through Van Sant's aesthetic sensibilities, one of the encompassing elements of his rather seemingly cold, objective trademark direction, which is just perfect for this type of a film: bringing journalistic truth without compromising artistic visions. The heartbreaking scenes sneak up on the viewer with gut wrenching objectivity: the suicide is a shocker and heart-wrenching and the ending is an absolute tragedy, though at the same time, highly optimistic and hopeful. This is a rousing, inspiring, heartbreaking, even operatic, work all at once, which is even brought vibrantly more to life by Sean Penn's magnificent award-winning performance as the man himself. Definitely one of the most important films of all time. Bring tissues.Movie Review: Absorbing look at struggle for gay rights
Summary: 5 Stars
Sean Penn gives a sensational performance in this movie which takes a wide-angle view of the early days of the struggle for gay rights. Penn brings to life Harvey Milk, a brave, charming pioneer who transforms himself into a brilliant politician becoming the first openly-gay person to be elected to a major political office in the United States. The movie also draws a fair and balanced picture of the man who shot him, a fellow council member called Dan White. Josh Brolin gives a wonderful performance of the troubled White without demonizing him. The movie hints he may have been a closeted gay man himself although there is no evidence of this in the historical record.
But Milk is at the heart of everything that happens here. We see his own mixed-up personal life, from the moment he meets one lover in the New York subway system, to the suicide of a second lover. Penn doesn't try to make him some kind of mythical hero but his fundamental decency always comes through. Not so for his opponents, especially the noxious, self-righteous Anita Bryant (where did she disappear to??) who campaigns to fire all homosexual teachers.
This movie, although it has a sad ending, is never depressing and gives us hope that we have come a long way since then in the struggle for basic fairness for gay people, although there is still a long way to go.
Movie Review: Worth Drinking To
Summary: 5 Stars
We all heard of milk, but I, for one, had never heard of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay politician in San Francisco. I have, on the other hand, heard of Anita Bryant - singer, Florida orange juice spokesperson, and anti-gay evangelist. The latter's remarks sparked controversy far greater than what I, at the time, could imagine, yet it was the former who had a story far too great not to be acknowledged.
At a time when gay rights are still very much an issue, Sean Penn provided an exemplary portrait of a gay man rising from a small camera store co-owner, to an under-dog politician, to a promising member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. His story rose above police corruption, homophobic persecution, and political injustice that could not be washed away by the aids outbreak of the proceeding decade, the current denials of gay marriage, and the not so distance accusations of radical "do-gooders" like Anita Bryant.
While the film contains several somewhat-graphic gay scenes, the focus is on the struggles and growth of an upcoming politician, his supporters, and his rise in popularity. In spite of a dramatic conclusion, viewers can obtain a sense of triumph and knowledge that gay rights and acceptance are long overdue. And so was the Oscar for Sean Penn.