If you’re thinking of seeing a movie over the holiday weekend, I recommend both The Wrestler and Milk. The Wrestler is an unblinking portrait of a has-been professional wrestler who now finds himself trapped in a lonely hand-to-mouth existence. Mickey Rourke brings a lot of pathos to the title role, playing the part with just the right combination of dickishness and goofy charm. Marisa Tomei is equally great as the small-town stripper who falls for the big lug. You know this story isn’t going to end well, but there are moments of sweetness to be found as these two damaged characters try to find some comfort in each other.
Milk is the story of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man to hold elective office in the United States. One of the dangers of biopics like this is the actor will work a little too hard to convince the audience of the subject’s importance, but Sean Penn keeps those tendencies in check. The audience sees Milk as both a leader and a flawed, somewhat narcissistic person in private. The film is particularly resonant given the recent passage of Prop 8 in California and it reminds us that, despite slow and incremental progress on the civil rights front, our society continues to excel at treading water.
