Brokeback Mountain

Is it something so good just can't function no more?

I have been torn on what to say about Brokeback Mountain because I know some of you intend to see the movie but haven’t had the chance yet. Also, I’ve been debating whether to just review it as a film or talk about it from a social/political angle. And should I include personal information relative to the movie? And should I talk about the upcoming Oscar race? And is it time I started using a new shampoo? As you can see I’ve really been torn.

You should be able to tell it’s a good movie already just from the rambling first paragraph. After all, any thing that has me considering kicking Panteen Pro-V to the curb has got to have some sort of appeal, right? Okay, that’s enough shampoo jokes. The movie had nothing to do with my hair care decisions. I’m just nervous because I don’t want to do this movie any disservice with sloppy writing even though it’s only going to be read by a handful of people. The movie is just that good.

I didn’t read any full-on movie reviews before seeing the movie but I did read some political editorials and other random blurbs about its supposed social implications. It would have been impossible for me or anyone else who even slightly pays attention to popular culture to go into it without knowing it as the “gay cowboy movie.” Whether that sound-bite sized description was gathered from late night talk show jokes, the aforementioned editorials, or just reading the headlines at your favorite daily websites; that’s how most people refer to the movie because that’s how they first heard the movie described. That three-word sketch of the movie coupled with the editorials from people who have no interest in “Brokeback” as an actual movie is what had me going into the movie with reservations as to whether the movie had an agenda and whether it was just pretty boys playing gay in an effort to win some awards and show their range. I was thinking too much and I should have simply been looking forward to the next Ang Lee movie.





It didn’t take me long to shake those preconceived notions though. The movie has everything working for it: the pace, the performances, the visuals, everything. It is stunning. Perhaps the most amazing thing about the movie is its economy. There isn’t a wasted shot. There isn’t a wasted word. There isn’t even a wasted glance between any of the characters. Each and every move says more and expresses more than you can see in a hundred movies.

That’s where my review is going to end because if you want to know plot points or if you want to know which scenes are especially powerful or who gives the best performance, you can read a quick review. If you want to know why a two hour movie with so much silence and so many shots of rivers and mountainsides can be praised for not being wasteful, you can read a longer and more thoughtful review. If you want to be misguided into thinking the movie has an agenda and that it’s just another liberal tool to push gay marriage on mainstream America, you can read some political or religious commentary.

I’m using this post to convey how powerful the movie was for me and to let you know that if you just read the headlines and commentaries you are cheating yourself from seeing a movie that transcends schemes and politics because Brokeback Mountain is not a gay cowboy movie, although there are gay cowboys in the movie. Brokeback Mountain is not a romantic love story, although there are some romantic elements, and, at its core, the movie is certainly about love. More to the point, it's about the inability to express love. It’s about being in love without being able to fully enjoy it because of a lack of security or even the knowledge that it truly is love in the first place and what’s more recognizable than that? That issue isn’t gay or straight, it’s human.

Simply put Brokeback Mountain is a great movie.