I’m Here To Recruit You

Milk (2008) This biopic tracks the meteoric rise and tragic murder of the first openly gay man to hold a high elected office in a major U.S. city. Harvey Milk finds a place to stand and fight for the rights of gay people in the San Francisco in the 1970s.

Directed by Gus Van Sant

Starring Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, Alison Pill, Emile Hirsch

Why I Liked It – A brilliant performance by Sean Penn of a major American political and cultural icon.

Harvey Milk was a nice, gay, Jewish boy from New York who struggled to find a balance between his sexuality and the expectations of mid-20th – century America. When he moved to the Castro district in San Francisco, he found a place where he could fit in. He also found the cause that would dominate the rest of his life. Beginning as a business owner looking to be treated fairly, then to gay pride activism, his journey took him into politics. After several failed attempts, and despite the often overt resistance of the liberal leadership in the city, Milk was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. In the eleven months before his murder, Milk shook the foundations of a city and a nation.

The story itself is stunning. I remember hearing about in vague terms while I was in college. The product of a sheltered, middle-class suburban upbringing, I had an unclear understanding of what it meant to be gay. As a theater major, I had my first contact with openly queer people. I reached the “So, that’s a gay/lesbian person? Cool” phase of my understanding. Still a naïve kid, my deeper understanding of what that meant in real life for real people was weak. Having grown up through the assassinations of both Kennedys, Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, and several attempts on the life of President Ford, this was, sadly, just one more.

Sean Penn’s performance dragged me back to that time. This is a stunning, Oscar-winning performance. As he so often does, he disappears into the person he’s portraying. We see Milk with all his human foibles. Always focused on the goal, too often to the detriment of his personal life. The movie surrounds him with a wonderful cast, but this is about his performance. He doesn’t disappoint.

Some emotions that were raised inside me by the movie came as a surprise. At the time, Anita Bryant was a sideshow for me. She was raising a stink, causing problems, but it seemed to that naïve boy that she was playing to a small, ignorant audience. Bryant didn’t seem like she deserved much of my attention. When the clips of the actual Bryant played in the film, literally letting her speak in her own voice, I was a little surprised at how angry it made me. Her smug self-righteousness as she poured out her hate-filled bile pissed me off. Maybe the boy has finally grown up.

As Pride Month ends, we must never forget that the battles Harvey Milk fought have not yet been won. There are still too many people who harass and assault our LGBTQIA+ siblings. Too many would push them back into the closet. Too many would strip them of their dignity and their rights.

We have to keep pushing forward. Harvey Milk famously said, “You have to give them hope”.

You can stream “Milk” on Amazon Prime Video, YouTube, Google TV, Apple TV, and Fandango At Home

Rating – ***** Highest Recommendation