"A raw, powerful story of two young men, a Wyoming ranch hand and a rodeo cowboy, who meet in the summer of 1963 sheepherding in the harsh, high grasslands of contemporary Wyoming and form an unorthodox yet life-long bond--by turns ecstatic, bitter and conflicted. The new film from Academy Award-winning 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."
I just saw the preview for the movie when i went to see The Constant Gardener and it really looked great, not just because I m an intense homo-erotic but It really looked like a fascinating love story and it seems to be one of the first movies about homosexuality with big stars. I Am really looking forward to it.
__________________
"After coming into contact with a religious man
I always feel I must wash my hands."
-Friedrich Nietzsche
I saw Brokeback at the Denver Film Fest last week.
Wow. Even better than the book. And I loved that book. (Short story.)
Can't wait till it opens, to see how much of America is ready for it. Please get a group together to see it the weekend it opens in your city. (Dec 9 in NY, LA and SF. Sixteen more cities Dec 16. Then rolling out through Jan and Feb.)
My review and tons of links at my Brokeback site in my signature.
__________________ My Brokeback Mountain web page--every imaginable link: http://blogs.salon.com/0001137/stories/2005/09/25/brokebackMountain.html
The man-on-man action is slight. Mostly when they are together they are just wrangling sheep or riding out into amazing Wyoming canyons . . .
And I think this story will move just about anyone. The NY Observer piece said press screenings had rooms full of hardened cynical straight male critics blubbering in their seats.
It's gay thing is the source of their problem--it is what is forcing them apart most of their lives, ruining their marriages--but it the conflict it creates is universal.
As for redeeming qualities, don't take my word for it. The Gurus o' Gold--a site compiling Oscar rankings from roughly a dozen of leading "experts," from Newsweek, Entertainment Weekly, etc.--has Brokeback in first place as most likely to win Best Picture. All those people obviously see something pretty redeeming.
(I can't post a link on this site until I'm "better known," but if you want the link to Gurus o' Gold, follow the link in my signature, and it's listed right near the top. FYI, Munich is in second, Walk the Line third, then a big dropoff in points to Memoirs of a Geisha and Good Night/Good Luck.)
__________________ My Brokeback Mountain web page--every imaginable link: http://blogs.salon.com/0001137/stories/2005/09/25/brokebackMountain.html
Well I thought Crouching Tiger--his second-to-last film--was one of the best of the decade, and I would put it right on a par with that. Similar sweeping grandeur, but without flying off rooftops or fighting in trees. (hahaha.)
Definitely a 10 on a 10-scale.
I have not seen all the big films yet this year--most have not gotten to Denver--but it's the best I've seen so far, by a long shot.
The two other best I've seen this year were Millions (tragically overlooked--from the director of Trainspotting), and Capote.
It's definitely my favorite since at least Eternal Sunshine, and it's oddly similar. Two people madly in love, being torn apart, who are fighting like crazy to stay together. Essentially. Though in dramatically different ways. (And in both films, one of the two is fighting much harder and very differently than the other.)
__________________ My Brokeback Mountain web page--every imaginable link: http://blogs.salon.com/0001137/stories/2005/09/25/brokebackMountain.html
I've heard good things about this movie. Hopefully it doesn't use it's homosexually driven characters and theme as a gimmick for attention and actually does the story justice.
But, from what I've heard, it does. I'll see it when it comes out for rent.
Let's see, if I were trying to one of the world's leading filmmakers who had already directed two recent Oscar winners, and my main objective was to cash in my reputation for big bucks--to the point where I was going to stoop to "a gimmick for attention"--what kind of film would I make? Oh, of course! A film about two gay cowboys, what could be more bankable than that?
You can love this film or hate it, but that's the first I've heard anyone accusing the team of doing it as a gimmick to grab attention.
After the Denver screening I attended, Ang Lee was interviewed at length on stage. He said he read Annie Proulx's story after he finished Crouching Tiger, and it really moved him, drove him to tears. Then he went off to spend a few years on The Hulk, and when he finished, Brokeback was still in his head. For four years it was calling out to me, he said, just wouldn't let me go. So he knew what his next project had to be.
And I can't imagine how you would think Annie Proulx wrote the story or Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana adapted it and watched it languish for years, out of anything but love for the story.
Whether they succeeded, that's for you to decide. But I think you are way off base questioning their motives. This is about the furthest thing you can get from a cynical Hollywood money grab as you can get.
__________________ My Brokeback Mountain web page--every imaginable link: http://blogs.salon.com/0001137/stories/2005/09/25/brokebackMountain.html
The Independent Spirit Awards noms announced this morning.
Brokeback was tied for second with four noms (Behind "The Squid & The Whale"), for best pic, director, actor and supporting actress.
I can't post links, but google (in google news) "Independent Spirit Awards," or follow the link in my sig, and I've got several links at the top of my site.
__________________ My Brokeback Mountain web page--every imaginable link: http://blogs.salon.com/0001137/stories/2005/09/25/brokebackMountain.html
I never accused anyone of anything. I said "hopefully this doesn't happen, and from what I've heard, it doesn't". That is not an accusation in anyway. That is me merely saying that it could be very easy for some film makers to use the homosexual nature of the story as a gimmick for attention, never said that I THOUGHT that's what was being done.
As far as I'm concerned homosexual movies are for the homosexual. Stupid movies are for the ignorant, and pieces of art are for admirers. I personally am not looking forward to this. According to reports, Heath Ledger nearly broke co-star Jake Gyllenhaal's nose while filming a kissing scene. I'll stick to King kong, and Chronicles of narnia. And yes. I will also stick to my non-homosexual porn.
It's not that I have anything against gays, but I'm personally not interested.
Last edited by Dusty on Nov 30th, 2005 at 01:50 AM
Just because there are gay characters in this movie doesn't make the movie gay.
Although, I think this won't exceed my expectations, I'm going to try pretty hard to not base an opinion of the film just because the two main characters are homosexual.
KMC Community Forums
Sep 23rd, 2005 03:08 AM
Yeah, it really does. 
