Quartile rating: 7/10 · 1 rating
Harvey Milk was an outspoken human rights activist and one of the first openly gay U.S. politicians elected to public office; even after his assassination in 1978, he continues to inspire disenfranchised people around the world.
The Times of Harvey Milk is a landmark documentary that weaves archival footage, personal testimony, and political history into a deeply compelling portrait of a charismatic activist. The narrative structure is exceptionally well-crafted, building Milk's story with genuine dramatic momentum. Novelty is high because the film arrived at a moment when gay political history was virtually invisible in mainstream documentary, making it a genuinely singular and historically significant work. Cinematography earns a solid above-average for its effective deployment of archival material and period footage, though it doesn't transcend documentary convention. The ending is the film's weakest structural moment — the tragedy of the assassination and the lenient verdict for Dan White are devastating, but the documentary struggles to find a satisfying or resonant close, leaving the audience with righteous anger but little formal resolution. Acting is assessed on the interview subjects and narration (by Harvey Fierstein), which are earnest and effective but not exceptional.