The Times of Harvey Milk

Oscar hopes are high for Gus Van Sant’s Milk, an excellent biopic of the first openly gay elected official in American history. Van Sant credits this Oscar winning documentary in his own film, and he’d have been rude not to: Milk borrows liberally from Epstein’s film, whether lifting footage directly or forensically recreating key moments. There are no surprises to be had from The Times of Harvey Milk, structured as it is in linear fashion using found footage, talking heads and narration from Harvey Fierstein (Independence Day, Mrs. Doubtfire). While the new movie refuses to be tragic, closing on a hopeful note, this film is fuelled by something else. Released in 1984 it brims with righteous indignation, particularly in relation to the leniency of Dan White’s sentence. Furthermore, while Milk seeks to paint the supervisor as defiantly genial, Epstein addresses his more unpalatable traits (temper tantrums) and the complex machinations of the US political system. Sean Penn's better looking, though.