Milk (A-) (Quick Review)

[dalmatianjaws]

Gus Van Sant is at his best when he uses his unique artistic vision to balance the diluting power of Hollywood studios. He ALMOST pulled it off with Finding Forrester and succeeded wildly with Good Will Hunting. When he's left to his own devices he creates brilliant but almost unwatchable films like the Gerry and Elephant.

Milk might be his best film to date for a broad audience. It has his flair and knack for turning melodrama into real drama.

Of course, Penn is amazing as Harvey Milk. He's not just a gregarious icon, he's a real human being, with a weakness for helping the unhelpable even when it ruins his own happiness. Penn also conveys the ethical dilemma that Milk battled once he was elected to office; no longer able to incite passionate riots once he was a city official, he resorted to morally gray political scheming to achieve his agenda. Penn shows this so well, watching this joyous character all but blackmail other politicians is almost as painful as watching his assassination (no spoiler, read a history book).

The film has a similar directing style to Frost/Nixon, it borders on a fake documentary at times. But the deft editing and cinematography take the audience through different film stocks and frame rates without seeming gimmicky.

In the end, Milk suffers from the same weaknesses as most bio pics. So much time is covered, and so many characters are developed, that the whole film stays at an arms length. Still, the strong performances from all the actors and the strong script make this a fine film.