Gus Van Zandt’s MILK, about Harvey Milk, the slain first openly gay public official is no frothy biopic. Powered by yet another transformative Sean Penn performance it doesn’t quite represent a unique approach to this type of story but nonetheless is quite moving.  It also cuts deeper due to the current gay marriage initiatives that failed to gain ground her in California.

We first see Harvey in New York in the early 70′s, alone and looking for a “special” friend to help him celebrate his 40^th birthday. The fact the he and James Franco have a full onscreen bromance within the first 10 minutes I think was wise in getting the audience “acquainted” with the ooh and aaaah aspect of two male movie stars getting it on. No slow Brokeback buildup in this one. Harvey feels that he hasn’t done much with his 40 years and chooses to move to San Francisco to start a new life in the burgeoning gay Castro district.  He opens a camera shop and gradually starts getting involved in local politics mostly involving advocating for gay rights.  Without a lack of representation in the community, Milk emerges as a charming, intelligent and tenacious neighborhood leader.  His “I’m Harvey Milk and I’m here to recruit you” became the rallying cry for his campaign and with three failed attempts at city council, he finally emerged a victor. Shortly after, he was tragically shot along with the Mayor by a recently fired city councilman Dan White. As it moves to the inevitable tragic conclusion, we meet Milk’s very loyal and outspoken political crew of gay men, with Milk as den mother, fighting for their social and political rights. We see the toll that Milk’s political life takes on his personal life with his longtime lover leaving (Franco) and his innocent, dedicated and needy new lover (Diego Luna) ending his life.

As much as I’ve enjoyed Van Zandt’s independent streak, I always look forward to him conforming to more of a traditional Hollywood structure because he always adds his unique approach, elevating a traditional format to something greater (Good Will Hunting). Van Zandt cleverly uses real news footage with re-enactments to great effect. The period detail and costumes all invoke the 70′s with documentary like detail and certain shots (beating shown through reflection in whistle, final shooting to name a few) are beautifully rendered in their atrocity. But the film is also about a man who has finally found his mojo. At 40 he has found passion and purpose to change the world.  Milk’s political aspirations and need to elevate homosexual  rights starts to really effect his personal life in that he can’t sacrifice his ambition and loses some important personal relationships along the way.

This might be the first Sean Penn role where his sweetness is his primary color. You don’t equate vulnerability and softness with Sean Penn, but portraying Harvey Milk seems to have expanded his range and freed him as an actor to an even greater level.  The simple device of having him sitting at a table, alone, narrating the movie sounds banal enough but his directness, honesty and sweetness make it all the more poignant knowing the outcome.  Diego Luna, Emile Hirsch and particularly Josh Brolin are all great.

The fact that prop 8 passed in California and that gay men and women are still fighting for equal footing socially made this film even more relevant. Yes, we’ve come very far with gay acceptance in society but not far enough.  I was grateful to spend time learning about a part of American history that I didn’t know much about that like all great movements, are propelled by a charismatic and visionary leader like Harvey Milk.

The slim plot centers on the very strict Principal of a Catholic school (Meryl Steep) who is confronted with the possibility of the Father of the parish (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) conducting “improper” behavior with the first and only black student. The story however cleverly becomes less a did-he or didn’t he mystery than an examination of what lengths one goes to protect their personal and religious faith. What does belief mean for different people and at what length are they willing to defend something that they feel but can’t prove?

The camera picks up the nuance of performance that the play cannot. I think the ability to see a close-up of an actor’s face can really determine the meaning of a piece. Phillip Seymour Hoffman, by his simple expression (or lack thereof) or line reading can create a whole new meaning to the same words said by another actor. I felt much differently about his character in the play than the film which is a testament to the very subtle writing.  Shanley really trusts the audience to put meaning in it.

I heard from a few people going into this about the miscasting of Meryl Streep in the role but damn you Meryl, there you go again! -creating, as usual, a very specific character performed so organically. From her accent to her shifty eyes to the way she delivered the powerful last lines, I couldn’t keep my eyes off of her. Phillip Seymour Hoffman, one of the greatest naturalistic actors ever, yet again shines through creating a fully humane individual who is accused of some horrific things. He has an amazing emotional range and has the ability to always have his personality come through whatever role he does, however different.  Kudos must be also given to Amy Adams and the incredible Viola Davis who breaks your heart in probably the most tragic scene in the movie.

If you’re in the mood for a subtle chamber piece of top-notch acting and writing, don’t miss it.

This is the story of Benjamin Button, born old and growing younger by the day. The first hour is really special, mixing humor and amazing technology while introducing all the major characters and settings. As odd and intriguing as Benjamin is, we are often as entertained by those around him.  We meet his father who abandoned him and his adopted caretaker Queenie and her lover Tizzy, and all the characters in the home, as well as the young Daisy who comes to visit her Grandmother to whom he strikes up a friendship and a then a love affair with. In the beginning, there is much humor sprinkled throughout from the resident whose been struck by lightning seven times to the oddball yodaesque voice of Benjamin as a “young” man. I love how the film never explains his condition and nobody around him tries to reveal the mystery of discovering why Benjamin is who he is. He just is growing young by the day, a typical oddball. After some funny scenes of becoming a man, Benjamin works on a tugboat and then settles into a hotel in Russia on assignment. This is when he meets Elizabeth Abbott (Tilda Swinton) and he starts to have his first love affair.  The film hits notes of poignancy when the affair ends, but Benjamin never dramatically reacts to anything, he’s just more of an observer.

The film is framed in a not wholly original fashion by having the lost diary of a dying woman be the narrative thread.  Although I’d be hard pressed to find a better way to tell it, the episodic nature of the movie propels it but at the same time makes it feel like a highlight reel. For instance, the middle half when Benjamin is out to sea is entertaining enough but we never get a sense of what he really WANTS, as he is discovering the world, much like the audience.  There is a certain lack of urgency to this as Benjamin seems always so resigned to what’s happening around him. There is never any true breakdown or dramatic discovery (even when he finds out who his real father is). The last half of the movie deals with his relationship with Daisy and for me, it was the most poignant as it is a love story that will never fully bloom due to the nature of Benjamin’s condition. They have a real love affair when they “meet in the middle” and their ages are close to each other.  But how can a love last when the lovers are literally growing apart? Benjamin knows this and again, has sacrificed and resigned himself to a life of solitude and discovery, never truly getting close to anyone for the fear that it won’t last. It’s the ultimate price he has to pay for who he is, always being out of step with everyone around him.   The last few scenes with baby Benjamin being taken care of by an older daisy is really moving and amazing. She actually reads baby Benjamin the same story book that her Grandmother read her and Benjamin when they were young.

I’ve always liked Brad Pitt as he really is a character actor trapped in a leading man’s body. I just saw Burn After Reading and he was probably the best thing in it, in a pretty minor part. In this one, his strength lies in his stillness. Fincher uses his laid back persona to great effect and his softness (some call aloofness) works really well. He reminded me of a lot of Robert Redford who always conveyed a lot with minimal expression.  Cate Blanchett is as usual beautiful and amazing as are all the supporting character actors and kudos for Fincher for casting out of the box like Jason Flemyng as his father.

To span from birth to death, telling the story from any perspective, is a monumental task.  Everyone is comparing this to Forrest Gump (same screenwriter) in its epic and episodic narrative, starring an outsider/innocent. While the thrust is the same, this one feels much more slow-moving and mysterious where Forrest Gump is a more sentimental and broad piece of pop entertainment that really focused on humor of the innocent swept up by America and its people. This is a more muted film but in a way a worthy companion piece.

It seems to me that blogs are like skid-marks. Something happens, and everyone leaves their stamp on the road of opinions.  Everybody leaves a trace, usually in varying shapes . It’s becoming unavoidable, so I’ve jumped into marking my way through the internet highway to leave a few skids of my own, opining on media that excites me – movies,music, television.

Enjoy and feel free to leave some skids of your own!