Hammerman Ikon

Hammerman Ikon Film Guide

Milk
2008
***
Director: Gus van Sant
Cast: Sean Penn, James Franco, Emile Hirsch, Diego Luna, Josh Brolin, Alison Pill

In 1977, Harvey Milk won a seat in the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, and became the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in the US. Less than a year later, he was brutally assassinated. This conventional biopic views him with dewy-eyed adulation and tells us everything we need to know about Harvey the activist, but almost nothing about Harvey the man. The result is an informative but not particularly involving drama. Sean Penn's commanding lead performance and Dustin Lance Black's screenplay won Oscars.