In 1977, Harvey Milk became the first openly gay man to serve in a United States public office when he was elected to the board of supervisors for the city of San Fransisco. Since then, even following his death in 1978, Harvey Milk has remained an inspiration to many groups of oppressed peoples.
For this reason, director Gus Van Sant decided to make a movie depicting the heroic life of Harvey Milk and his inspiring story. Dispite the fact that Milk is not yet out in all theaters people are speculating that this powerful retelling of the life of Harvey Milk has the potential to drive an entire generation towards more social and civil liberties.
In fact, many have begun to notice that the coincidental timing of the movie is almost eerie. The main scope of the movie took place during the battle over Proposition 6, the proposed ban on homosexual teachers and any teachers who supported their homosexual coworkers. In comparison to 2008, history seemed to repeat itself as the civil liberties of a minority group were challenged once again, this time by the ominous Proposition 8. In this time of challenge, many people have taken the time to reflect on the lives of those who fought this same battle only 30 years ago. I think we all should.
http://www.time.com/time/time100/heroes/profile/milk01.html
5 comments:
I was actually just looking at the movie profile on IMDB and I thought the exact same thing: that the movie is really paralleled to recent events in the same place, as the post said. I think it's people like Harvey Milk that give others the strength to stand up for what they believe in and to fight for their rights. I also think that the movie, if done well, will put a lot of things into sharper focus for some people, while strengthing other's positions on the subject, whether for the better or worse.
~Kimiya Bahmanyar
This does parallel recent events. The presidential election being one of them. Obama is a role model for many blacks. They are finally seeing one of their kind in the white house. When Harvey Milk was elected it was the same thing. Gays and lesbians were finally being represented by somebody like them. Of course, race, gender, and sexual orientation shouldn't matter. Whether you are gay or black doesn't determine how your gonna lead people, of course you might be more sensitive to your people's demands. People like Harvey Milk show us that we need to look past religion, race, gender, and sexuality.
I hope the movie is good...
I'm really excited for this movie. Gus Van Sant did some cool movies, like "Good Will Hunting" and "Paris, je t'aime," and if this movie is anything like those, it's gonna be great. I always look forward to movies that will be controversial and really affect social change--the real purpose of movies. This movie will expose the hardships that many gay people go through within the professional, especially political, market, as well as portray gay people in a completely non-stereotypical way that will hopefully break some stereotypes about the "flamboyance" of all gay people.
I hope this movie makes all the Prop 8 supporters cry out of guilt.
The timing of the movie is almost perfect. I'm sure it will influence many to more liberal ways of viewing homosexuals. The plot does sound familiar to recent events.
I agree with Rachel. Gus Van Sant has made some great movies in the past and I'm looking forward to watching this one. When does it officially come out?
I wonder how the San Francisco community will react to the movie, considering that the events took place here. Although I'm pretty sure that the movie will be met with fanfare, what if it's a flop? What if the movie fails to capture the true events accurately and San Franciscans get offended by the inaccurate portrayal of its history?
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