Director Gus Van Sant used actual footage of gay rights movements and marches from the 1970's throughout the film, which really added to the viewers historical understanding of the actual times in which the movie was set in. It opened with images of police officers beating gay men sitting quietly in a bar in New York City in the early 70's, and then arresting them without warrant or charge.
Sean Penn gave a phenomenal performance as Harvey Milk, one that, in my opinion, is certainly worthy of a Best Actor Oscar nomination, if not a win. It was also great to see an A-list actor playing gay, proving that we've come a long way in recent years as the media and Hollywood embrace GLBT and other human rights issues through their works. He also looked a lot like the real Harvey Milk, too.
I won't go into too much detail about the film, because everyone should go see it, and have a cry for themselves. A+ movie!
