A Recommendation

Caveat: Unabashed, unapologetic Sean Penn fan here. Watching that man interpret a role, irrespective of the quality of the rest of the film, is a guilty pleasure I am always eager to indulge. This affection stretches back many years, even before the scene in The Interpreter where he's leaning against the rail letting Nicole Kidman say good-bye ( I wanted to jump into the screen); or as the anguished and desperate father discovering his daughter's murder in Mystic River, a portrayal that rendered his character's subsequent actions understandable and, indeed, sympathetic. Penn seems to have captured the essence of his character in Gus VanZant's sensitive biopic, Milk. In particular, it was enchanting to see him embody the sweetness of Harvey Milk, a touch reminiscent of his Emmet Ray, the fictional jazz guitarist/dreamer in Woody Allen's otherwise ordinary Sweet and Lowdown.

Beyond Penn, the story of Harvey Milk is the quintessential American story depicting the life and struggle of an important hero in our ongoing struggle for civil rights, and VanZant tells it captivatingly. The performances are authentic and Milk's underlying message rings through. That is; once the world knows us, it will be impossible for it to be against us. Such an easy lesson and one that we humanoids continue to have to rediscover over and over again. I haven't heard from Aunt Japan yet (http://dottier.blogspot.com/2008/08/aunt-japans-rating-system.html), but I'm fairly confident you won't feel anyone owes you a cent after this one.