787. got milk

i saw it.
and i got it.
the movie, milk, that is.

for those who may not know or remember, harvey milk was to the equal rights of homosexuals as martin luther king was to the equal rights of african americans.
the brevity of their lives immortalized by the enormity of their actions.
the cost of not just doing the right thing, but demanding the right thing of others.
the only difference: king's war was page one above the fold, milk's was page eight below the fold.

however, all you have to see are the opening five minutes to understand what was at stake for harvey.
i was more than old enough to have some distant memories of this story, but shamefully i didn't—i suppose much too busy pursuing promotions in the formative years of my thirty year corporate career.
but not to worry.
this movie hit me over the head with a police nightstick.
and i won't have a problem forgetting any time soon, the result of great storytelling and outstanding acting by sean penn and a supurb supporting cast—probably an oscar for mr. penn (at least a nomination).

i do have one warning.
if the sight of two men in the throes of passion, no matter how tastefully filmed, makes you queasy, prepared to be queased.
so squirm a bit.
get outside the box.
and from what i could tell of this late sunday afternoon crowd of old folks, there were plenty who did.
but they were the same folks breaking into applause at the end—something i haven't done in some time!

rating: two moist eyes way open!