Luke
stu-kicks
CibbuanoMilk
December 19th 2008 08:59
It's been a while since I wrote a movie review on here but Oscar Season has got me all abuzz with excitement once again. This year I'm trying to anticipate what will get nominated so that I can ensure I manage to see everything before the ceremony. Milk is one such film, and I thought I'd chuck something up in reference to it.
Now, being a hetero Australian male born in the 80s, I can't say that I'm overly familiar with gay rights activist and politician Harvey Milk (the figure whose life the film Milk is based around). So watching this film was very much a history lesson of sorts. Director Gus Van Sant (thankfully not in his artsy mode) presents a fairly straightforward biopic of the first openly gay man to be elected to office in the United States of America. It's a rollercoaster of a ride, following the rise of the gay civil rights movement in San Francisco and Milk's fight against the democracy-killing Proposition 6 - a christian-backed attempt to legalise the discrimination against homosexuals in the workplace (especially the education system).
Like I said, I came into this film largely unaware of the story behind it, so I found the whole thing to be quite fascinating. Over the years Hollywood has given us many stories about the struggle for equal rights for women, african-americans, people in wheelchairs, etc, etc. But seldom has that other civil rights movement - the gay one - been drummed into the collective consciousness of the mainstream filmgoing public in the way that the black civil rights movement has. Now that America is sitting comfortably under it's first black president, well, there's no better time for the media to address and chronicle the ongoing fight for widespread public acceptance for gays. The race civil rights war has been fought and won, now it's time for the western world to address the remaining bigotry that still infects our legislation, entertainment and workplaces. In short, it's the perfect time for a film like Milk.
It's been an uphill battle for the depiction of the gay man in film. Much like the mammy-singin', chicken-eatin', mister-suh yes-suh black characters from the early days of cinema, the gays in Hollywood films have long been relegated to the 'safe' role of comic relief. It was high time that a proper, mainstream film dealing with gay rights and issues was made. One that wasn't made for a gay audience and had big name actors in it - a movie that could be for everyone. Not Andy Warhol crap where we watch a closeup of a guy's face for 30 minutes while he gets a blowjob, not a 3 hour movie that consists of just a blue screen, and not some navel-gazing indie talk piece full of graphic unsimulated man-on-man sex. Gus Van Sant has wisely opted to make this film as very much the gay version of Malcolm X. And Sean Penn delivers a three-dimensional and uncharacteristically-energetic performance worthy of the important subject matter.
I realise I haven't really talked about the movie much, but rest assured that it's a good one. Harvey Milk is an inspiring figure, regardless of his sexual orientation, and I came out of the film wanting to know more about the story behind it. I don't really have anything else to say other than that you should check it out.
| 70 |
| Vote |
subscribe to this blog
Comment by Luke
Old Movies
Cane Toad Warrior
Comment by Morgan Bell
Science News
Deep Pencil
Business News
Movie Train
Artist Quirk
i think it will be nice to see a gay man in a film who isnt dying of AIDS
Comment by Anonymous