I don’t want to get thrust into the Gay-Rights issue because that really isn’t my political scene but Milk was excellent. From the writing to the directing to the acting it was well made. What I enjoyed most was the unexpected parts that came from me being wholly unfamiliar with the plot. If you’re unfamiliar with the basics, in 1978 Harvey Milk was the first openly gay man to be elected to a major office in probably the United States but certainly California. His time in office was cut short by his assassination – not a spoiler – but not before he was able to accomplish much in the name of the Gay community.
When I saw the previews I thought the movie looked credible but I was afraid that Sean Penn was overplaying the role. After seeing the movie it is clear that the trailers were cut to be startling so they used the parts that were overplayed possibly. At any rate, Penn plays the role of a gay San Francisco City Supervisor admirably.
James Franco, Josh Brolin, and Emile Hirsch round out the cast as his boyfriend, political competitor, and campaign aid in that order. Loyal readers will recall my distaste for Pineapple Express but Franco has redeemed himself in this movie. While I would not call his performance spectacular he showed he could act in this movie – far more than he did in Spiderman or Pineapple Express. As a side note Back has found out that initially Heath Ledger was rumored for Franco’s role. Josh Brolin takes the prize for my favorite scene. For those who have seen the movie, this was the scene where Brolin is drunk. He also seems to fit the period piece well. Something about his look screams 1970s. Matt Damon was initially rumored for this role but his schedule conflicted. I think Brolin does it well though. Emile Hirsch is good, credible- adds to his resume.
I couldn’t help but connect the chronology in my head though. There we sat on a December evening in 2008, thirty years after these events. The movie takes place ten years after the death of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy. Fifteen years after John F. Kennedy. The death of Bobby stood out in my head more though. When Dr. King died, Kennedy was supposed to be giving a campaign speech at a rally in what was considered a dangerous ghetto neighborhood in Indianapolis. He was told not to go through with it by the police but he got up there anyway. His speech is said to have kept the black population of Indianapolis from rioting that night as they did in other cities but really it was the courage that he showed that made me think of him. Of course just two months later he too was shot in California. Ten years later Harvey Milk in San Francisco, by no means the equal of King or RFK but to the Gay Rights movement it felt like it.
Whatever the politics we feel as if we live in a safe and secure environment. Assassinations such as these seem so improbable these days. We have a laugh with the President when he jokes candidly about dodging a thrown pair of shoes, “They were a size ten” he says. Watching a movie such as Milk and then remembering ten years prior to 1968 makes me more skeptical that life is that safe and secure. How long do we have before something else happens?
~Forth
