Have you ever heard of the movie Milk? If not, I can assure you it is lactose free, but chalk full of advocation for gay rights.
The film was released on October 8, 2008 and follows the life of Harvey Milk, one of the first openly gay men to hold public office in the United States. The movie was directed by Academy Award nominee, Gus Van Sant, with original screenplay by Dustin Lance Black, cinematography by Harris Savides, and was produced by Academy Award winners Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen.
In 1970, Milk, played by Sean Penn, starts off in New York City where he meets his future lover, Scott Smith, played by James Franco. From there they hit it off and together, make the life changing decision to move to San Francisco.
From there, Milk almost immediately immerses himself in protests and projects that boycott neighborhood businesses that are hostile toward the gay community. He soon takes the leap to run for the first openly gay elected officeholder in San Francisco.
After three tries, Milk is elected supervisor of District 5 in 1977. But being elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors came with no lack of backlash. He becomes targeted by anti gay followers of Anita Bryant and begins to cross paths with a fellow newly elected supervisor, Dan White, played by Josh Brolin.
As events continue to unfold, Scott leaves Milk due to a strain in their relationship. Milk later finds a new partner, Jack Lira, played by Diego Luna, the two having their own difficulties. Even as Milk becomes a more experienced politician, his personal life becomes more and more isolated.
Milk was assassinated in San Francisco by Dan White On November 27, 1978.
The New York Times said, “That power lies in its [the movie’s] uncanny balancing of nuance and scale, its ability to be about nearly everything — love, death, politics, sex, modernity —without losing sight of the intimate particulars of its story. Harvey Milk was an intriguing, inspiring figure. “Milk” is a marvel”.
Sources:
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/jan/22/milk-film-review-gus-van-sant-sean-penn
https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=97518380
https://www.focusfeatures.com/milk/about
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milk_(film)
https://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/26/movies/26milk.html
I haven't seen the movie but hearing this it sounds like a good one. Also, just last year, the San Francisco airport renamed terminal 1, Harvey Milk terminal. A large part of the terminal is one of the walls. There are pictures and articles on Harvey Milk and his life, there are also articles on his death and pictures of protesters. Because it is at the airport, Many who aren't locals could get to learn a little bit about his life while waiting to for a flight.
ReplyDeleteI remember hearing about this movie but I never got a chance to watch it. I enjoyed reading your description of how Milk's political strength got in the way of his personal life. I was surprised to read that Milk came into office originally without any backlash, but it is a tragedy that he was assassinated shortly afterward.
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