Rating: NR
Genre: History [nf]
Release Date: 06/08/2004
Dubbed: English
Distributor/Studio: New Yorker Video

A documentary portrait of San Francisco's first openly gay politician, city supervisor Harvey Milk, The Times of Harvey Milk might not have been made but for the tragic circumstances of Milk's death. On November 27, 1978, Dan White, a former city supervisor who was desperate to regain his post, entered City Hall with a gun and murdered both San Francisco's mayor, George Moscone, and Milk. At the trial, White's lawyer skillfully turned the jury's attention away from his client's public anti-gay statements to focus on White's spotless record and his extremely agitated mental state on the day of the murders. White was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and sentenced to a relatively brief jail term, sparking a demonstration and riot by gay supporters of the murdered men. The film considers Milk's accomplishments and his exceptional popularity; this is not an objective look at a man, but a celebration of a martyr. Winner of an Academy award for Best Documentary Feature, The Times of Harvey Milk was released while White was serving his sentence; he was paroled in 1984 and committed suicide the next year. Epstein's other major efforts included the documentaries Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt (1989) (about the AIDS epidemic) and The Celluloid Closet (1995), about images of gay men and women in Hollywood films.

~ Tom Wiener, All Movie Guide

It is impossible to separate the accomplishments of San Francisco politician Harvey Milk from the implications of his tragic death, and filmmaker Robert Epstein and his colleagues don't even try. By virtue of his being openly gay, Milk attracted a lot of attention in a city allegedly famous for its tolerance of alternative lifestyles, but Epstein makes it clear that attention wasn't unanimously positive. The film shows how Milk became a transition figure; it wasn't enough that he was the first openly gay politician in the city, but that he had to become a victim of anti-gay sentiment, personified by Dan White, to become a national symbol of intolerance. Epstein shows how Milk's supporters went from an attitude of "Look how far we've come" after he was elected, to "Look how far we have to go" after he was murdered -- and especially after White's virtual acquittal. It's a story of triumph that is also quite melancholy, and Mark Isham's lovely music underscores that sentiment.

~ Tom Wiener, All Movie Guide

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