Scarlet Crystal
Bibbity Rabbity
Brokeback Mountain: The Story That Broke Everyone’s Heart
Directed by Ang Lee
Starring Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Williams, and Anne Hathaway
Released December 2005
Rated R
Summary from imbd:
The new film from Academy Award-nominated director Ang Lee. An epic love story set against the sweeping vistas of Wyoming and Texas, Brokeback Mountain tells the story of two young men - a ranch-hand and a rodeo cowboy - who meet in the summer of 1963, and unexpectedly forge a lifelong connection, one whose complications, joys and tragedies provide a testament to the endurance and power of love.
>>> My review contains some plot spoilers.
Most of you probably know that this movie recently won Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Song and Best Screenplay at the Golden Globes. I think this movie is worthy of each and every one of those awards.
It was heartbreaking… but I’ll get to that.
Because of its controversial subject, I was unable to view the movie at my regular theater. I had to go far out of my way to find a theater where it was showing at a reasonable time. I found one, of course. But I ended up missing the first few minutes searching for parking because I was in unfamiliar territory.
Once I settled into my seat, I gathered that I hadn’t missed very much. Fortunately for me, the film hadn’t really started going yet. It picked up quickly enough. The scenery on Brokeback Mountain was stunning, and the audience was immediately drawn to Jack (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Ennis (Heath Ledger), two cowboys of no previous relation. Between shots of thousands of sheep and cooking over small fires, Jack and Ennis chat about themselves and so on. Jack seems the more outgoing of the two. Ennis is quieter, and already engaged (on and off screen) to Michelle Williams’ character.
Jack, probably hoping to catch Ennis’ interest, mentions that he is a rodeo cowboy. Ennis replies that his father always said that rodeo cowboys “was all frack ups.” Jack grabs a rope and hop around the campfire, jumping as if he were on a bull. When he ends up on the ground, Ennis adds that his father was probably right.
Scenes like this make the audience very comfortable with the two cowboys, so their developing relationship seems only natural and not forced at all. Because of that, the movie as a whole is very effective.
When it comes time to leave Brokeback Mountain, a brief fist fight erupts. Ennis is clearly troubled over what he’s done. In a well-placed flashback, Ang Lee has shown everyone why Ennis is so uncomfortable with the idea of being gay. Ennis, however, is falling in love with Jack.
The two cowboys return to their respective lives. Each gets married: Ennis to his fiancé, Alma (Michelle Williams), and Jack to a rodeo gal named Lureen (Anne Hathaway). Seeing Anne Hathaway on screen was not a shock to me, as I knew she was in the film. It was, however, a bit odd to see her there. I’m not particularly a fan, though I admit I’ve seen several of her movies. I’m still not used to her being anything but Mia in Princess Diaries. Oh well. She did her job well enough.
Michelle Williams, however, was brilliant. Alma is a mother before she knows it, and she and Ennis struggle in their marriage. When Jack comes back into the picture, she sees her husband kissing him and knows immediately that they were never just “fishing buddies.” It’s the first heartbreak of the film. The camera angles in this scene were very well done, I thought; first, the camera focuses on Ennis pulling Jack around a corner so that they can’t be seen kissing from the street. It then switches to Alma’s view from the door a the top of the stairs, looking down directly on the kiss.
There’s no hiding from anything in this film. Everything is presented to you straight up, with no beating about the bush. Jack and Ennis each have trouble with themselves and their families. Ennis and Alma divorce; Ennis’ daughters, particularly Alma Jr., stay with Alma. This is the second heartbreak, as Alma loves her father very much. Throughout the film, she comes to see him. It is unclear whether or not she understands why her parents split up, but we cheer her on because it is obvious that Ennis wants to do right by her and love her, but is not sure how.
In the progression of the film, Jack gets lonely and seeks other male company between the few visits to Ennis. Ennis, however, is content with their intermittent relationship. Jack is the one, then, that is hit the hardest by the backlash against gay men. That is the third heartbreak of the film.
Ennis seems somewhat of a lost soul, but when he visits Jack’s family, he finds that Jack has one of his old shirts from their first trip to Brokeback Mountain. He takes it, as well as Jack’s shirt that was tucked inside it. He hangs it in his trailer, so maybe he is not so lost after all. And when Alma Jr. visits him in the final scene of the film, he proves to the audience that he has not given up on life and love when he comes to understand that he loves his daughter, and that she loves him, too.
So I guess there is life after love and heartbreak.
I can’t think of enough valid negative aspects of this film to write a paragraph. The brief scenes of violence (against gays) were brief enough that nobody could think them too much, unless of course, they were far too young to be watching this movie. It is rated R. Unlike some films, in which R is a bit too heavy and PG-13 would have been sufficient, R is an accurate rating for this movie.
Having said that, I would highly recommend it. You may need to bring tissues along.
MY RATING: 5 out of 5 stars.
Directed by Ang Lee
Starring Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Williams, and Anne Hathaway
Released December 2005
Rated R
Summary from imbd:
The new film from Academy Award-nominated director Ang Lee. An epic love story set against the sweeping vistas of Wyoming and Texas, Brokeback Mountain tells the story of two young men - a ranch-hand and a rodeo cowboy - who meet in the summer of 1963, and unexpectedly forge a lifelong connection, one whose complications, joys and tragedies provide a testament to the endurance and power of love.
>>> My review contains some plot spoilers.
Most of you probably know that this movie recently won Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Song and Best Screenplay at the Golden Globes. I think this movie is worthy of each and every one of those awards.
It was heartbreaking… but I’ll get to that.
Because of its controversial subject, I was unable to view the movie at my regular theater. I had to go far out of my way to find a theater where it was showing at a reasonable time. I found one, of course. But I ended up missing the first few minutes searching for parking because I was in unfamiliar territory.
Once I settled into my seat, I gathered that I hadn’t missed very much. Fortunately for me, the film hadn’t really started going yet. It picked up quickly enough. The scenery on Brokeback Mountain was stunning, and the audience was immediately drawn to Jack (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Ennis (Heath Ledger), two cowboys of no previous relation. Between shots of thousands of sheep and cooking over small fires, Jack and Ennis chat about themselves and so on. Jack seems the more outgoing of the two. Ennis is quieter, and already engaged (on and off screen) to Michelle Williams’ character.
Jack, probably hoping to catch Ennis’ interest, mentions that he is a rodeo cowboy. Ennis replies that his father always said that rodeo cowboys “was all frack ups.” Jack grabs a rope and hop around the campfire, jumping as if he were on a bull. When he ends up on the ground, Ennis adds that his father was probably right.
Scenes like this make the audience very comfortable with the two cowboys, so their developing relationship seems only natural and not forced at all. Because of that, the movie as a whole is very effective.
When it comes time to leave Brokeback Mountain, a brief fist fight erupts. Ennis is clearly troubled over what he’s done. In a well-placed flashback, Ang Lee has shown everyone why Ennis is so uncomfortable with the idea of being gay. Ennis, however, is falling in love with Jack.
The two cowboys return to their respective lives. Each gets married: Ennis to his fiancé, Alma (Michelle Williams), and Jack to a rodeo gal named Lureen (Anne Hathaway). Seeing Anne Hathaway on screen was not a shock to me, as I knew she was in the film. It was, however, a bit odd to see her there. I’m not particularly a fan, though I admit I’ve seen several of her movies. I’m still not used to her being anything but Mia in Princess Diaries. Oh well. She did her job well enough.
Michelle Williams, however, was brilliant. Alma is a mother before she knows it, and she and Ennis struggle in their marriage. When Jack comes back into the picture, she sees her husband kissing him and knows immediately that they were never just “fishing buddies.” It’s the first heartbreak of the film. The camera angles in this scene were very well done, I thought; first, the camera focuses on Ennis pulling Jack around a corner so that they can’t be seen kissing from the street. It then switches to Alma’s view from the door a the top of the stairs, looking down directly on the kiss.
There’s no hiding from anything in this film. Everything is presented to you straight up, with no beating about the bush. Jack and Ennis each have trouble with themselves and their families. Ennis and Alma divorce; Ennis’ daughters, particularly Alma Jr., stay with Alma. This is the second heartbreak, as Alma loves her father very much. Throughout the film, she comes to see him. It is unclear whether or not she understands why her parents split up, but we cheer her on because it is obvious that Ennis wants to do right by her and love her, but is not sure how.
In the progression of the film, Jack gets lonely and seeks other male company between the few visits to Ennis. Ennis, however, is content with their intermittent relationship. Jack is the one, then, that is hit the hardest by the backlash against gay men. That is the third heartbreak of the film.
Ennis seems somewhat of a lost soul, but when he visits Jack’s family, he finds that Jack has one of his old shirts from their first trip to Brokeback Mountain. He takes it, as well as Jack’s shirt that was tucked inside it. He hangs it in his trailer, so maybe he is not so lost after all. And when Alma Jr. visits him in the final scene of the film, he proves to the audience that he has not given up on life and love when he comes to understand that he loves his daughter, and that she loves him, too.
So I guess there is life after love and heartbreak.
I can’t think of enough valid negative aspects of this film to write a paragraph. The brief scenes of violence (against gays) were brief enough that nobody could think them too much, unless of course, they were far too young to be watching this movie. It is rated R. Unlike some films, in which R is a bit too heavy and PG-13 would have been sufficient, R is an accurate rating for this movie.
Having said that, I would highly recommend it. You may need to bring tissues along.
MY RATING: 5 out of 5 stars.
