The Criterion Collection

“Winner of the Oscar for best documentary and countless other honors, The Times of Harvey Milk is a game-changing doc, one that not only captures an atmosphere and history of a time and place but does so with impressively astute filmmaking style,” writes Mike Restaino in a DVD File review of Criterion’s release of Robert Epstein and Richard Schmiechen’s film. “You might think you know what this Harvey Milk documentary is going to throw to you, but even having seen the film more than once, the doc is so rich and multifaceted that one gets different things out of it with every viewing . . . And what a way to view the film.”

DVD Talk’s Jason Bailey is equally roused: “The Times of Harvey Milk is a visceral, emotional film: it taps the viewer right into its events . . . The power of this film lies in those moments, in the bravado with which the filmmakers bring them to life, and make us a part of them.” For J. D. Lafrance of WhatDVD.net, “The Times of Harvey Milk is a powerful film and a sobering reminder of how much still has to be done to give equality to gays and lesbians.” Winston Gieseke, for the Advocate, also remarks on the film’s lasting importance: “It’s easy to draw parallels between the 1978 assassinations of San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone and January’s shootings in Tucson, making the new Criterion edition of the acclaimed doc as relevant as ever.”

PLUS: Epstein sits down with Movieline’s Alonso Duralde for a discussion about the film and his barrier-breaking career.