Attached is my movie review of the biographical film"MILK", which just came out in theatres. Kyle talked a bit about Harvey Milk in his presentation the other day. I recommend the film, as it taught me a lot about an important figure in LGBT history.

Use my movie review exemplar as a model for your own review assignment. Basically, I am interested in your personal view of how one equity/representation issue is depicted in a media product (namely, a film or possibly an episode of a TV program). You may write about any representationissue you like; you don't need to write about the same topic that you did your presentation on... With a such a wide variety of topics covered by your peers, there is plenty of choice.

Include the Year, Genre, Director, Writer, and Main Cast info,as I did in my review. Word count should be approx 400-600 words. It's okay if you write more than 600.

I am really looking for a personal response, hopefully to a film you have not seen before. That's why I said today that you can submit the assignment over the holidays if you wish; I'd rather you take the time to view a new film and expose yourself to some new viewpoints/ideas rather than just regurgitate ideas about a film you've seen a million times.

MOVIE REVIEW: “MILK” by Emma Munro

Focus of review: Representation of Homosexuality/ Politics

Year: 2008

Genre:Biography/ Drama

Director: Gus Van Sant

Writer:Dustin Lance Black

Starring: Sean Penn as Harvey Milk

James Franco as Scott Smith

Emile Hirsch as Cleve Jones

Allison Pill as Anne Kronenberg

Josh Brolin as Dan White

Victor Garber as Mayor George Moscone

continued….

I saw the film MILK in theatres on Friday, December 5th. I was surprised to discover how little I really knew about Harvey Milk, an infamous name in LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) history. All I knew about Mr. Milk before seeing this film was that he was an out gay man who made a name for himself in San Francisco politics sometime in the 1970s. Gus Van Sant's film taught me a lot about Harvey Milk's life and his long struggle to make a difference in his community, some of the major personal and political battles he fought, which gained nationwide attention across the USA, and how he met his unfortunate end at the hands of a former colleague. I was inspired by Harvey Milk's genuine desire to change the world he knew for the better, his perseverance to reach elected office (a process which took years before he finally won a seat as San Francisco city supervisor in 1977), and his courage in being “out and proud” at a time when homosexuality was still the subject of widespread discrimination.

Once in office, one of the major political battles depicted in the film which Mr. Milk fights against in 1978 as Supervisor is “Proposition 6.” The proposed law would have made firing gay teachers--and any public school employees who supported gay rights--mandatory. Similar laws had gained public support around the United States in the late 1970's, but the film depicts Harvey Milk's success in fighting against the bill's supporter John Briggs, with Proposition 6 being eventually defeated in California by over a million votes. I was shocked to think about the fact that only 30 years ago, gay teachers were being openly discriminated against by some people in their communities, and were being represented in the media and by some politicians and public figures as pedophiles and deviants, who posed a danger to children. The supporters of Proposition 6 tried to depict homosexual teachers as “recruiting” children to their “gay lifestyle”. One of my favourite moments of the film is when Harvey Milk faces John Briggs in a live debate and quips, “If it were true that children mimicked their teachers, you'd sure have a helluva lot more nuns running around” (a joke about attending convent schools run by nuns, which were more common at the time).

Despite the eye-opening events of Proposition 6, and my elation when the bill was defeated in the film, I couldn't help thinking about Proposition 8, a bill which was passed on the California ballot of this year's election. In October 2008, California citizens voted to restrict the definition of marriage to being between a man and a woman, effectively eliminating same-sex couples from marrying, and overturning a Supreme Court ruling from May 2008 which allowed same-sex marriage in the state (as celebrated by Ellen DeGeneres and her partner Portia De Rossi, who married this year). It is frustrating to think about the struggles that the LGBT community still faces every day from some facets of the public, and how many battles are yet to be fought and won by all minority groups to achieve something resembling true equality. In many ways, the release of MILK is well-timed, and draws attention to both how far we have come in 30 years, but also how little things have changed.

Overall, Gus Van Sant's MILK is a straightforward telling of an extraordinary man's life. Sean Penn can always be counted on to deliver an amazing acting performance, and his depiction of Harvey Milk is no exception. The supporting cast are also all fantastic, creating well-rounded characters who transcend gay and lesbian stereotypes. I was truly inspired by Harvey Milk's courage and his determination to make positive changes in society. How many of us can say that we are willing to put everything on the line for what we believe in - our families, our friends, our partners, even our very lives - as Harvey Milk did? I would recommend this film to anyone interested in learning a little bit more about LGBT history and seeing that one person's life can truly make a difference.

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