It's More Than A Bio-Pic

Rating: 8/10 (26 October 2009)

As a biography of Harvey Milk, this movie works very well. Milk, of course, was the first openly gay man elected to public office in the United States when he won a seat on the San Fransisco Board of Supervisor in the mid 1970's. Aside from those two facts, I really knew nothing else about Milk, and appreciated the look at his life and career. Whatever one's perspective on homosexuality and the gay rights movement is, one can't deny that Milk, by his political activism on behalf of the gay community, changed the face of society and encouraged a growing tolerance (at first) and then finally a growing acceptance of homosexuality as normal. Since the gay rights movement and the homosexuality community is now a significant political and even religious force, that alone makes Milk someone we should probably know more about. I appreciated Sean Penn's portrayal of the man. Penn seemed to grasp the character well, and offered a convincing portrayal, and we learn a lot in this movie about Milk the man - his life, his relationships, his politics. It's a worthwhile look at the man.
What makes the movie even more worthwhile, though, is that it serves as so much more than just a biography of Harvey Milk. Director Gus Van Sant very skilfully managed to weave the evolution of the gay rights movement in the 70's into the life of Milk. The two became inseparable. As the movie starts in 1970, Milk is an in the closet insurance salesman in New York City, at a time when gays in general were closeted, harassed and even despised. The Anita Bryant controversy plays a significant part in the first half of the movie as a reminder of those times. Eventually moving to San Fransisco with his new partner Scott, Milk comes out of the closet and becomes a leader of the gay community, finally being elected on his third attempt at office. His life clearly serves as a symbol of the growing visibility and influence of the movement in general.
Aside from Milk, the primary character in many ways is that of Dan White (played by Josh Brolin.) White was a "family values" type, elected as a Supervisor at the same time as Milk. The two form an uneasy partnership on some issues which eventually falls apart. Eventually, White became mentally unstable and, as history and the movie record, assassinated both Mayor George Moscone and Milk.
Most civil rights movies, of course, focus on the struggle for the rights of African Americans in the 50's and 60's. Will this movie start a trend toward movies depicting the battle for civil rights for the gay community? Only time will tell, but it is a very interesting movie about an interesting man and an important movement. 8/10