Times of Harvey Milk

Theatrical Release Date: 2013 05 24 (USA - Limited Rerelease)

UPC: 715515068710

Studio: Criterion

MPAA Rating: NR   Contains:[Adult Situations, Adult Language]

Summary: A documentary portrait of San Francisco's first openly gay politician, city supervisor Harvey Milk, The Times of Harvey Milk might not have been made but for the tragic circumstances of Milk's death. On November 27, 1978, Dan White, a former city supervisor who was desperate to regain his post, entered City Hall with a gun and murdered both San Francisco's mayor, George Moscone, and Milk. At the trial, White's lawyer skillfully turned the jury's attention away from his client's public anti-gay statements to focus on White's spotless record and his extremely agitated mental state on the day of the murders. White was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and sentenced to a relatively brief jail term, sparking a demonstration and riot by gay supporters of the murdered men. The film considers Milk's accomplishments and his exceptional popularity; this is not an objective look at a man, but a celebration of a martyr. Winner of an Academy award for Best Documentary Feature, The Times of Harvey Milk was released while White was serving his sentence; he was paroled in 1984 and committed suicide the next year. Epstein's other major efforts included the documentaries Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt (1989) (about the AIDS epidemic) and The Celluloid Closet (1995), about images of gay men and women in Hollywood films. ~ Tom Wiener, Rovi

Category: History [nf]

Awards: Best Documentary Feature – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Documentary Feature – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Documentary – New York Film Critics Circle Film Presented – Telluride Film Festival Special Award: Documentary – Sundance Film Festival Film Presented – Berlin International Film Festival

Features: Audio commentary featuring director Robert Epstein, coeditor Deborah Hoffmann, and photographer Daniel Nicoletta
Interview clips not used in the film
New interview with documentary filmmaker Jon Else
New program about The Times of Harvey Milk and Gus Van Sant's Milk, featuring Epstein, Van Sant, actor James Franco, and Milk friends Cleve Jones, Anne Kronenberg, and Nicoletta
Rare collection of audio and video recordings of Milk
Excerpts from Epstein's research tapes, featuring Milk partner Scott Smith
Footage from the film's Castro Theatre premiere and the 1984 academy awards
Panel discussion on supervisor Dan White's trial
Excerpts from the twenty-fifth anniversary commemoration of Milk's and Mayor George Moscone's assassinations
Original theatrical trailer

Times of Harvey Milk

Format: Blu-ray

Release Date: 03/22/2011

Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 Pre-1954 Standard

Audio: DDS2.0 Dolby Digital w/ 4 channels, DHMA null

Runtime: 88 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Region: Blu-ray region A (North America, Central America, South America, Japan, Taiwan, North Korea, South Korea, Hong Kong, Southeast Asia)

Tom Wiener

It is impossible to separate the accomplishments of San Francisco politician Harvey Milk from the implications of his tragic death, and filmmaker Robert Epstein and his colleagues don't even try. By virtue of his being openly gay, Milk attracted a lot of attention in a city allegedly famous for its tolerance of alternative lifestyles, but Epstein makes it clear that attention wasn't unanimously positive. The film shows how Milk became a transition figure; it wasn't enough that he was the first openly gay politician in the city, but that he had to become a victim of anti-gay sentiment, personified by Dan White, to become a national symbol of intolerance. Epstein shows how Milk's supporters went from an attitude of "Look how far we've come" after he was elected, to "Look how far we have to go" after he was murdered -- and especially after White's virtual acquittal. It's a story of triumph that is also quite melancholy, and Mark Isham's lovely music underscores that sentiment. ~ Tom Wiener, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Harvey Fierstein  Actor 
Harvey Milk  Actor 
Robert Epstein  Director 
Robert Epstein  Producer 
Mark Isham  Composer (Music Score) 
Richard Schmiechen  Producer 

Country: USA