If you have 2 hours and 8 minutes to spare in your busy schedules, then you should go to the theaters to see Milk. Even if you don't have time, you NEED to go see this film.
It's one of the best movies I've seen in a long time. It's an amazingly well written, well shot film. The actors were all incredible. Sean Penn is definitely going to be nominated for an Oscar in this role as Harvey Milk.
For those who are not familiar, Harvey Milk was the first gay politician to be elected to major office in the United States. The movie takes place between 1970 and 1978, showing Milk's progression from local town gay activist to State Assemblyman. You may have heard of the Castro District, a gay community within San Francisco. Well, Harvey Milk was the one responsible for turning that area into a gay friendly place.
And all of the voting and the protests in the movie of course reminded me of Prop 8 here in California. And it made me think WHY this movie didn't come out before the elections? It would've been such a powerful message. And I think it would've gotten more voters out there to vote No on Prop 8.
I don't want to ruin anything (even though the movie ruins itself in the beginning... and not that Milk's life can't be researched anyway), but it really made me cry. Not just the ending, but several other parts of the movie were very touching. Just watching some of the gay movements that Milk was responsible for, and all that he did for the gay community really touched me. I found myself relating to a lot of things that happened in the movie. And it really brought tears to my eyes knowing that Harvey Milk accomplished so much for the gay community, and that the reason that I have the choice to be so free about my homosexuality is due in major part to him. He was the first gay person to go out and fight for the rights of gay people and I want to thank him for that.
So please go and watch Milk whenever you get the chance. You really won't be disappointed. And for those who have already seen it, any thoughts from you all?
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4 comments:
He was the first gay person to go out and fight for the rights of gay people...
Not quite. 1969, Stonewall. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stonewall_riots
Stonewall was big news among gay people, but Harvey Milk became a celebrity and a man with real political power. The latter fact, in the long historical tradition of minorities rising to power in America, was what made him famous (or infamous) in the mainstream society.
Harvey Milk became a darling of the media and he knew how to "use" the media better than they knew how to use him.
This thoughtful film is also a queer politics primer, written by the master in his blood and tears.
Ok oops, you're right. I didn't mean to write that. I meant to just re-iterate that he was the first gay person with political power to do anything.
In fact the movie goes through some of the Stonewall footage in the beginning of the movie and that made me teary eyed too.
I so want to see this movie and can't wait to see it! Thanks for blogging about it! You just made me want to go see this movie even more.
I saw it last night which u know if u follow my blog. Those Stonewall scenes [real tv footage] were so sad. Makes me wonder how they did it. Here we r 60 or so years later living a pretty good life compared to that. "Stonewall" still happens in one form or another everywhere. But there's much less, a small minority of ignorant bigots who need a life.
But when it's MY life in ruins, it's hard to remember how B A D it was back then.
My dad is from the San Francisco area. He remembers all of it quite well, being a progressive and political person just like me! I think we'll go see it with him and "uncle priest". It's fascinating to hear their stories about that time.
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