Political Sensibilities of Milk and Philadelphia( movies) Essay

Political Sensibilities of Milk and Philadelphia( movies) - Essay Example However, it is important to note that the film Philadelphia has more impact than Milk as far as raising political sensitivity on matter of homosexuality is concerned. Milk is about the last eight years of Harvey Milk’s life. Harvey Milk was not only a gay activist but also the first openly gay man to be elected into a major public office in America (Charity, 2008). On the other hand, Philadelphia is about the life of Andrew Beckett, a gay lawyer, who after contracting Aids is being hooded out of the law firm he practices law in (Perry, 2001). This film proceeds to illustrate the basic human rights and the needs of Andrew, his experience of alienation and vulnerability. It is however noteworthy that though Philadelphia affects the perspective of many Americans on matter of homosexuality it does not do it more vigorously as Milk. Milk and Philadelphia put gay subject matter into mainstream America, even though this subject was a taboo in 1990s when they were both released. In my opinion, the movie Milk changed the perspective of majority of Americans toward the homosexual population. In 1970s for instance, homosexual people enjoyed lesser liberty that the rest of the population which is not the case today courtesy of films like Milk and Philadelphia and gay right activists activities. To majority of American, homosexuality was wrong and immoral and therefore in their opinion unacceptable to them. Milk has a very big impact on our political view as far as homosexuality is concerned. It also compels us to pay close attention to the gay population and their rights. While it is utterly impossible to perfectly understand someone who does not come from your own background, and especially when it comes to matters of sexuality, people can almost experience it for a brief duration through the realistic visual of films. Films give people the insight they need to