Milk (I) (2008)

The story of Harvey Milk, and his struggles as an American gay activist who fought for gay rights and became California's first openly gay elected official.

Director:

Gus Van Sant

Writer:

Dustin Lance Black

Stars:

Sean Penn, Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin

Won 2 Oscars. Another 45 wins & 66 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sean Penn	...	Harvey Milk
Emile Hirsch	...	Cleve Jones
Josh Brolin	...	Dan White
Diego Luna	...	Jack Lira
James Franco	...	Scott Smith
Alison Pill	...	Anne Kronenberg
Victor Garber	...	Mayor Moscone
Denis O'Hare	...	John Briggs
Joseph Cross	...	Dick Pabich
Stephen Spinella	...	Rick Stokes
Lucas Grabeel	...	Danny Nicoletta
Brandon Boyce	...	Jim Rivaldo
Howard Rosenman	...	David Goodstein (as Zvi Howard Rosenman)
Kelvin Yu	...	Michael Wong
Jeff Koons	...	Art Agnos

Storyline

Using flashbacks from a statement recorded late in life and archival footage for atmosphere, this film traces Harvey Milk's career from his 40th birthday to his death. He leaves the closet and New York, opens a camera shop that becomes the salon for San Francisco's growing gay community, and organizes gays' purchasing power to build political alliances. He runs for office with lover Scott Smith as his campaign manager. Victory finally comes on the same day Dan White wins in the city's conservative district. The rest of the film sketches Milk's relationship with White and the 1978 fight against a statewide initiative to bar gays and their supporters from public school jobs.

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Plot Keywords:

gay | activist | gay rights | new york city | california | 

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Taglines:

Never blend in

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | History

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, some sexual content and brief violence

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [es]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 January 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Untitled Harvey Milk Project

Filming Locations:

29th & Dolores Streets, Noe Valley, San Francisco, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£336,027 (UK) (23 January 2009)

Gross:

$31,838,002 (USA) (10 April 2009)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Focus Features, Axon Films, Groundswell Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Chris Evans auditioned for the role of Scott Smith, but lost out to James Franco.

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Goofs

During rally scenes in the San Francisco Civic Center, the old and new San Francisco Public Library buildings are visible in the background. The New Main Branch Library, designed by Pei Cobb Freed, was built in 1995.

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Quotes

Harvey Milk: You know what I think Cleve Jones?
Cleve Jones: That you're gonna get somewhere if you keep talking?
Harvey Milk: No, I think you should do what you do well- be a prick. But come with us and be a prick.

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Summer Special 2008/09 (2008)

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Soundtracks

"Presto, su! Mario! Mario!"
Written by Giacomo Puccini
Performed by Symfonický orchester Slovenského rozhlasu (as The Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra)
Conducted by Alexander Rahbari
Courtesy of Naxos
By Arrangement with Source/Q
Tosca: Nelly Miricioiu (uncredited)
Spoletta: Miroslav Dvorsky
Sciarrone: Jan Durco (uncredited)

User Reviews

Everything comes together in this one

Let's get one thing out of the way. Is it entertaining? And how! Sean Penn's best performance to date – Oscar quality; Emile Hirsch riotously perfect (best "supporting?"); James Franco heartbreaking; Diego Luna, devastating; Josh Brolin, flawless. Not one false note in any of the actors – a very complicated story unfolds with absolute clarity. I will be seeing this one again just for the screenplay. I was very gratified that no attempt is made to be "delicate" about Harvey Milk's personality, either his sex life or his out-sized ego, which perhaps ironically for some, makes him all the more heroic. The finest "political" film I think I've ever seen. It does more than dramatize a strong true story, it captures convincingly the truth about a whole political movement. (One that's as freshly active as today's headlines: Prop 6 or Prop 8 — does it ever end?) There is an ease and familiarity to the "scene" — to the historical period and place — with very few, small anachronisms, as far as I could tell. This is also the most assured work of Gus Van Sant, a genuine film artist, who here delivers a complete drama with real visual style and brazen wit. The blending of documentary footage is the most seamless I can remember seeing anywhere. The crowd scenes are remarkable, and all of the location shooting miraculously right. For a couple of fast, fast hours, I felt as though I had spent a couple of days — hilarious, intense, inspiring days — immersed in 1970s San Francisco. This movie does what all movies should do. See it.