The Mayor of Castro Street.

Rating: Null/10 (17 March 2009)

Closet homosexual New Yorker Harvey Milk (played superbly by the exceptional Sean Penn) decides to go to San Francisco in the early-1970s with young lover James Franco and live openly as a gay couple. By the middle of the decade the titled character is trying to reach political office with the hopes of becoming the first openly gay elected official in U.S. history. As the pre-AIDS 1970s continues, gay rights becomes one of the most heated and controversial issues of the contemporary time period. Marked with triumphs and ultimate tragedy, the film is a would-be powerhouse combination of gifted direction (by the always dependable Gus Van Sant), interesting commentary, and a dynamic leading man (Penn) seemingly making all supporting players around him better (most notably antagonist Josh Brolin as a highly conservative elected official who appears to have potential homosexual tendencies of his own). The subject matter is highly mature, the movie's pace is questionable at times, and the film is definitely flawed in many key areas. However, Van Sant's gifted story-telling ability (along with the use of historical archives and news footage) makes "Milk" a fascinating film, albeit a somewhat over-rated one. Greatly influenced by the Best Documentary Feature Oscar winner "The Times of Harvey Milk" which was produced in 1984. 4 stars out of 5.