San Francisco’s got MILK

This past Tuesday I made my way down to the Castro for the premier of “Milk”, hoping to spy a celebrity or two and ended up seeing quite a few more.

A relatively low key event (low key for a movie premier that is) the crowd on the street was only a couple hundred strong which just made it easier to catch a glimpse of the likes of Sean Penn, Emile Hirsch, Diego Luna, James Franco, Diane Lane and Mayor Gavin Newsom just to name a few. I got to talking to the guy standing next to me who happened to be an extra in the movie and he told me that tickets to go inside and watch the premier with the stars evened out somewhere around five grand and included an after party for those who could afford it. If you hadn’t heard about the screening, it’s no surprise. Word is publicity for the film is being kept to a minimum for now but is scheduled to be set into full swing after the presidential election has been decided. So be on the lookout in the next couple of weeks for trailers and ads to start popping up.

For those of you who might not know, “Milk” is a biogaphical film about Harvey Milk, A former New Yorker who moves to San Francisco and becomes the first openly gay elected official in the United States and a gay rights advocate who is later assassinated along with the then Mayor, George Moscone by San Francisco Supervisor Dan White. Many of Harvey Milk’s real life friends and associates were part of the film’s production both on and off camera.

The spectators that were present seemed to fall pretty neatly into two categories: those on the sidewalk across from the theater holding “No on Prop 8” signs and those of us on the sidewalk closest to the red carpet snapping pictures and leaning over the barricades for a better look. I have to really give it up to the political advocates across the street, they were very enthusiastic and were chanting since before I arrived and were still going at it after I left. I’m sure this premier was looking like the perfect opportunity for those anti-Prop 8ers to get out there and voice their opinion in the grand tradition of the city; what with the theme of the movie, the historic location and the vote so near. San Franciscans have never had trouble exercising their right to assemble; we’re a very participatory society, which brings us to the extras in this film.

To be an extra on the set of Milk you pretty much had to sign up online and show up at the right place in the right dress for the period. There was a call for people of all races and genders to come and help recreate the marches that originated in the Castro during the 1970’s. There were no auditions and the website stated “If you sign up you will be used”. It was a nice extra little touch to give people who live in San Francisco now the opportunity to be apart of the retelling and connect with a pivotal part in their hometown’s history.

“Milk” officially hits theaters November 26th. I suggest you go look up the trailer if you have not seen it already, this one looks like it’s going to be a good one.

A Beautiful Fall

When some think of a neglected arthouse film, the image that comes to mind is a modern, avant-garde affair that looks into the abyss of the human condition and returns with stylishly esoteric profundity–all on a shoe-string budget, backyard sets, and a cast of newly-graduated drama majors. By this logic, though privately financed, minimally distributed, and completely unconventional, “The Fall” barely qualifies as arthouse. It is simply art.

In a 1915 Los Angeles hospital, a young Romanian girl named Alexandria (Catinca Untaru) recovers from a broken arm. Her boredom and curiosity lead her to discover Roy (Lee Pace from Pushing Daisies), a silent movie stuntman crippled during a shoot. Apparently amused by the girl, Roy spins a fantastical story about five eccentric heroes and their quest to bring down an evil governor. Thereafter, the film alternates between the hospital and storyland, with aspects of each entwining and coloring the other.

Save Me

Staff Writer: Laurel Bentley

Director Robert Grey’s film “Save Me” provides an intimate look at the church driven phenomenon of “reassigning” the sexual preference of homosexuals. Although the idea of converting gays to the “straight-and-narrow” through prayer and religious conditioning is nothing new, it has become increasingly prevalent in recent years as gay rights continue to move forward.  Filmed in New Mexico, “Save Me” is an honest, humanistic look at the conflicts between the hardships faced by homosexuals and the religious sect’s unwavering opinion homosexuality is a choice or a sickness. The film, introduces Chad Allen’s character, Mark, as a gay man with an addiction to drugs and sex that is slowly destroying his life. His brother takes him to Genesis Rehabilitation Camp where Gayle and Ted (Judith Light and Stephen Lang) run a program to help “heal” gay men of their sexual deviancy. Founded on good intentions, but run my closed-minded people, the Genesis Program provides gay men who have faced difficult and discriminated lives with a safe and loving community. Gayle and Ted take Mark in and he quickly becomes a part of the group, befriending fellow housemate Scott, played by Robert Grant.