Milk

The pitch: The self-proclaimed Mayor of Castro Street, Harvey Milk is voted on to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to become the first openly gay man elected to political office in the United States.

What it Really is: A retrospective on the gay cultural movement of the 1970s, and how the group gained political influence on both a local and national level due to Milk's tenacity in fighting for equal rights.

The Hook: The film's biggest selling point is Sean Penn. As Milk, the Oscar-winning actor knows how to command a scene like few others, and he can be both compassionately quiet and riveting at the same time. While there's no mystery of how the story is going to end, director Gus Van Sant's journey is compelling and well drawn out.

The Not So Good: Beyond Milk, few of the other characters are given much to do. James Franco, as Milk's love interest early in the film, falls by the wayside later on. Diego Luna has a relationship with Milk after being elected to office and the two have no chemistry whatsoever.

Can We Be Serious For a Moment?Milk is being released only a few weeks after California's Proposition 8 — banning gay marriage — was passed, and it's hard to guess how the film will play with voters in both blue and red states. Focus Features did a good job of marketing Brokeback Mountain and the film earned strong box office and nearly an Oscar win, but the studio might have a more difficult time with Milk. Penn is such a polarizing figure, and that alone could turn audiences away. The film is worth seeing, and Penn will surely be nominated for lead actor, but the message may have a hard time gaining traction after all the strum and drang of a fierce presidential campaign that has left everyone winded and wanting a rest.