London, May 5 (IANS): Pop star Madonna "cried and cried" as she watched her ex-husband Sean Penn play homosexual politician Harvey Milk in the biopic "Milk" because the film reminded her of the gay friends she has lost to AIDS.
"'Milk' was such a brilliant film. I cried and cried. I loved it. He (Penn) is amazing. I could see why he would be attracted to the role and be able to say yes in two seconds. Watching 'Milk' was such a trip down memory lane for me," dailystar.co.uk quoted Madonna as saying.
"After going to New York and being a dancer when the whole AIDS epidemic started and nobody knew what it was. And then suddenly, all these beautiful men around me, people who I loved so dearly, were dying - just one after the next," she said.
Penn won the academy award for the best actor for his portrayal of Milk, the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California.