I went to See Brokeback Mountain on Tuesday with Katie, and througly enjoyed it. Here's a review;
Anyone familiar with the writing of Annie Proulx will have
some idea of what to expect from this film; unfulfilled characters struggling
with hardship and longing, and a landscape that looms large enough to be a
character in its own right. In this film adaptation of Proulx’s short story of
the same name, the landscape is the vast open plains and rugged mountains of Wyoming, which are stunningly shot by director Ang Lee. The human characters are two herdsmen who
fall in love whilst working in the isolation of Brokeback
The physical love between Jack and Ennis has caused some viewers to leave the cinema, though the core of the film concerns the way in which their emotional bond sustains them through their lives and unsatisfactory marriages. But their love is an infidelity and a lie; both to their wives, who are grievously hurt by the deception and betrayal, and to themselves as Ennis refuses to fully acknowledge their love. Because of these central infidelities, it’s hard to see their love as hopeful or redemptive, and the tragedy is that at the end of the film, Ennis finally realises the importance of what he had only when he has lost it. But this is not a morality play; it neither condemns nor affirms homosexuality. What it does do is point up something universal about human love. For through his love and loss, Ennis discovers the possibility of a deepening relationship with his daughter. If a moral can be drawn, it is that the quality of the love we offer is deepened as we wrestle with, and are changed by, the joy and pain of loving. If only we are open to being changed.
Finally, Proulx has a film adaptation of which she can be proud.
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