An interview with “Milk” co-star Allison Pill

On Tuesday Milk comes out on DVD and I’m going to head straight to Best Buy to snap up a copy. My favorite video store, 20-20 in West Hollywood, already had copies on the shelves on Friday!

While much of the attention has focused on stars Sean Penn, James Franco, Josh Brolin and Emile Hirsch (along with director Gus Van Sant and screenwriter Dustin Lance Black), we haven’t heard as much from the actress in Milk who has the most significant role: Allison Pill.

She plays Harvey Milk’s campaign manager Anne Kronenberg, a bike riding lesbian who was just 23 when she helped him win a seat on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.

During our recent chat, Allison said Kronenberg was invaluable in helping her get to know the woman she was playing.

“It was amazing to hear the stories that no one else would be able to tell,” she said. “Just the simple stuff in the character that you wouldn’t find in a history book like ‘What was the office actually like?’ and ‘What did they do on a Friday night?’ and ‘What were the politics like with all the different personalities?’  To get that first-hand knowledge is incredible.”

So what did she think of Sean Penn’s Oscar-winning performance?

“I think he completely captured the heart of another person in this film,” she said. “I think he was absolutely mesmerizing.”

Allison figured Milk would be a hard sell commercially so the eight Oscar nominations and overall critical acclaim were crucial: “I think it’s amazing and has been such a help to us because the main thing that I loved was it led to more people seeing it, (Milk grossed just over $30 million at the box office) people who maybe aren’t the expected audience. I think it’s such an important film.”

And now even more can watch it on DVD – statting tomorrow!