Sean Penn may be infuriating, camera shy and a political naif of the first order.
But deposit him in the right project and he has few peers.
“Milk” is just such a movie, a rewarding biopic in which Penn stands as the unqualified center. A Best Actor nomination is a lock, and in a weak year for movies it’s hard to envision he won’t walk away with his second Oscar statuette.
The film’s political bent will only help.
“Milk” recalls the remarkable life, and assassination, of the first openly gay politician, Harvey Milk (Penn).
The film opens with Milk celebrating his 40th birthday alongside a new lover (James Franco) and some old regrets. He’s a closeted gay man whose life, thus far, hasn’t been much to write about.
That changes when he moves from New York to San Francisco’s Castro district, which at the time (the early 1970s) wasn’t the mecca for alternate lifestyling it would become.
Milk finds his political voice courtesy of aggressive police behavior toward gays and the cultural tsunami that was Anita Bryant. He runs for office, loses, then keeps on running with the hopes he’s spearheading a national movement for gay rights.
With every victory comes a crushing defeat. His political rise could spell the end of his long-term relationship, and his notoriety draws the unhealthy attention of a fellow San Fransisco pol (Josh Brolin), Milk’s ideological opposite.
Penn’s performance all but defies criticism. He’s a flawed but bullheaded hero, preening one moment, pragmatic the next. He lets Milk wash over him, transforming both his physical appearance and behaviors. There’s not a moment where the real Sean Penn makes an appearance.
His work here is so good, so all encompassing that he dwarfs his supporting players. Brolin, Emile Hirsch and Franco all do what they can to leave a solid impression, but the film belongs to Penn.
“Milk” begins in a paint-by-numbers biopic approach, making broad statements about the various characters and outlining the political battlefield. It’s only in the second half that “Milk” roars to life, focusing on the final battles that forged Milk’s legacy.
The movie’s Oscar chances will only benefit from headlines regarding Proposition 8 and a Hollywood community fully aligned with the current gay movement.
Penn’s performance needs no such boost. It’s a masterful turn in a biopic that can’t help but rekindle the national debate on gay rights. As well it should.
(Photo: San Francisco supervisor Harvey Milk (Sean Penn) raises a glass to his latest political campaign in “Milk.” Photo credit – Phil Bray)
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Gotta agree. About 30 minutes into this movie I thought to myself that this was an Oscar performance. I had not read any reviews of the movie and no pre-conceptions about it. I grew up in San Francisco in the 70’s and had a local interest in the story. I had no idea who Milk was when he was shot. Best movie I’ve seen this year.