Review: Milk

Milk is another movie I have wanted to see for quite some time, but alas it was not released in Kingston.  Luckily, my movie-starved little town is located almost smack dab in the middle of two large urban centres, making it possible to journey (this time to Ottawa) to theatres where the movies I want to see are playing.  Although the movie was not the main purpose of our weekend road trip, it did end up being one of the highlights.  I like biopics in general, but this one was particularly well done - and what a story they had to work with!  The film tells the story of San Francisco politician Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man elected to public office.  He is assassinated by fellow city supervisor Dan White, who would infamously get off with a manslaughter conviction after arguing twinkies made him do it.  The movie didn't get into the trial, which I found disappointing.  (But I suppose a tell tale sign of a good movie is that it leaves you wanting more).

  I always knew Sean Penn was a well respected actor, but to be honest I had not seen any of his movies since I was a young child.  He does an amazing job playing such an animated, fascinating character - certainly a performance more than worthy of an oscar nomination.  James Franco is also very good as Milk's boyfriend.  The one gripe I have with this movie probably has more to do with the script than with the acting itself:  the movie doesn't really explore Harvey Milk's character as much as it could have.  In parts I felt like I was watching a basic account of someone's life, as opposed to an in-depth look at the character himself.  Even the framing narrative, which features Milk speaking into a tape recorder telling his own story, feels more than anything like an account of the facts.  This could have been an opportunity to delve more into his character.  Overall this isn't such a big deal, though.  The movie is still excellent and I learned a lot.

 Watching this movie also brought back memories of my trip to San Fran last spring, and who can't use some warm memories of California in the dead of a Canadian winter?