# Times of Harvey Milk, The (1984)

### reviewed by
Brian Koller

    The Times of Harvey Milk (1984)

    Grade: 65

In 1977, Harvey Milk was the first openly gay man elected to the city council of a major U.S. city. But within a year, he had been murdered, at the hands of fellow San Francisco council member Dan White. White's subsequent conviction of voluntary manslaughter, rather than capital murder, led to violent protests from the bay city's large gay minority.

This summary makes for an interesting story, and "The Times of Harvey Milk" does a good job of putting the pieces together. People of various backgrounds who worked with Milk are extensively interviewed. This is combined with still photographs and documentary footage of Harvey Milk, which brings his energetic, thoughtful personality to the surface. Best of all are the local television news stories, about Milk, White and their agendas, giving a "you are there" quality to the documentary.

Born in New York, Milk spent his young adult life in the closet. He spent time in the Navy and as a stock analyst. Eventually, he came out, becoming a Broadway producer, and later moving to liberal San Francisco to run a camera store in the heart of the burgeoning gay community. He ran unsuccessfully several times for the city council, succeeding only when the voting was changed from city-wide to by district. For the first time, various minorities were represented on the council, including Milk.

Also new on the board was idealistic, deeply conservative Dan White. White's had financial troubles, and an inability to compromise led to political defeats. He resigned his seat, but was soon convinced by supporters to ask for it back. Liberal mayor George Moscone decided to give it to somebody else, enraging White. After shooting Moscone, White targeted Milk, not for being gay, but for being his most vocal opponent on the council. Before the trial, Defense lawyers carefully selected a jury that would be sympathetic to Dan White.

The murders came days after the Jim Jones tragedy in Guyana, with hundreds of San Franciscans among the victims. The peaceful protests that followed were in stark contrast to the riots that later broke out when White was given light sentences. White was released from prison in 1984, and committed suicide in 1985 (after the documentary was made).

The film's interviews include a gay man and a lesbian (his campaign director). But the most interesting interview targets are those that are less biased: an middle-aged Union man (Jim Elliot) who thought that Milk's political views were simply good common sense, and an Asian business advocate who praises Milk for his support for minority causes. Harvey Fierstein provides the unemotional narration.

For his efforts here, Produceer/Director/Editor Robert Epstein received an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.

kollers@mpsi.net http://members.tripod.com/~Brian_Koller/movies.html

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