Movie #7: Brokeback Mountain

#7 – 2/1/06
BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
DRAMA
CAST: Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Williams, Anne Hathaway
RATING: B
WHERE SEEN: Rose Theater, Port Townsend, WA
SEEN WITH: Stacy and Ashlee
REASON FOR VIEWING: Read short story, plan to see all Oscar-nominated movies
SETTING: 1963-1983 Wyoming
SYNOPSIS: Two cowboys meet while working as sheepherders in Wyoming during the summer of 1963 and begin a sexual relationship that spans 20 years, denying their sexuality, marrying and having children, in a time where to admit to being gay might mean suffering a gruesome death.

COMMENTS: This movie followed the short story very well. The movie did allow Ennis to become more of a sympathetic character than he was in the short story, but I never did like Jack. Although I did see this as a story of infidelity, I don’t think Ennis and Alma’s marriage had much of a chance from the get-go. The movie didn’t do anything to change my mind about the fact that it was less a love story than a story of one man’s (Jack’s) obsession with another. This was well-acted and the three actors (Ledger, Gyllenhaal, Williams) all deserve their Oscar nominations. It certainly is a movie that is great discussion material! Did Lureen know of Jack’s relationship with Ennis? If not for Jack, would Ennis ever have had a relationship with another man? Not the best movie I’ve ever seen, but I am glad I saw it, particularly after reading the short story. Oh and breathtaking scenery as well!