'Milk' (Gus Van Sant, 2008)

There are no words, truly, that can express my love for this film. Astonishing. Sean Penn. Oh, Sean Penn. Sean Penn is the Best Actor of 2008, bar none. I couldn't give less of a shit about whatever Mickey Rourke is doing, wrestling for Darren Aronofsky or whatever. Penn's performance was heartbreaking, sensual, caring, lovable, passionate: everything that I felt Harvey encompassed throughout his life. Every single time he came in front of the camera and gave one of the "My name is Harvey Milk, and I'm here to recruit you" speeches he was just...stunning. Stunning.


The supporting players as well were fantastic. James Franco, Emile Hirsch and Josh Brolin I found especially affecting in their portrayals. I'd love Franco to be nominated because he was just so damn cute (he'll be on my ballot for sure). Hirsch was splendid, coming off of his equally impressive turn in 'Into the Wild' last year. He's got a very promising career ahead of him, certainly. Brolin was magnificent, yet I was moderately surprised to find that he wasn't used as much as I had assumed. Yet, in all of his scenes he was just so terrifying. He coupled that sense of palpable danger with an intense vulnerability that was almost mesmerizing in its complexity. Alison Pill also is very entertaining in her bit part. I loved seeing this girl, who not so very long ago was starring with Lindsay Lohan in one of my favorite oh-so-guilty pleasures 'Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen', transform into such a fantastic actress. Diego Luna I felt was a bit on the obnoxious side, but later on in the film he has an incredibly stirring scene that made me bawl my eyes out. Granted, it was really Penn in that scene that was making me so emotional, but that's not the point.

So yeah. I really can't say much more. Van Sant's direction is phenomenal--his intertwining of archival footage is superbly done. The script by Dustin Lance Black is equally amazing, with every single detail of Harvey's life shown on screen being of merit. Not once did I think "Ugh, here we are again, going down your stereotypical biopic road." Everything had a purpose and it all worked grandly.

Harvey Milk's spirit lives on fiercely in this masterwork and, thanks to him, I have never been so proud to be a gay man in my entire life.


Thanks, Harvey.

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