"Brokeback Mountain" Out (sic!) on DVD April 4th!

Oooh, I may have to make a trip to Target. (Can you believe that after all of my yammering about the story/ movie going back years I still haven't seen the damn thing?)

Yay for cyphercat's town and yay for cyphercat for arguing with Mrs. Clueless!

Well, Brokeback was at the top of my Blockbuster Online list, and guess what? I got it and saw it today. What a beautiful, sensitive movie.

There was no explanation as to what happened to Jack at the end (I won't give it away). One might have surmised, but to me, that scene was out of left field.

I'm again just going by the story, but it's the unspoken thing lurking in the background of their whole relationship, what they knew could happen if they were found out.

So in that way, it's there throughout -- but the pacing/ choice of lead-in (or lack thereof) is a dramatic device to pack the most emotional wallop (again going by the story).

CAUTION -- May reveal S P O I L E R S.

Yes, it has been given away by too many sites and reviews of late. I had read the story so I was prepared but I watched my two theater "dates," and the stunned look on their face was priceless. That's when the flood of tears began to pour and they didn't stop until the end of the credits. It's been debated on the IMDb and Rotten Tomatoe boards and the consensus is that Ennis is naturally imagining something that may or may not have actually happened. The ending of film is also "open ended." It's in deep symbolism and one wants to believe that there may be a light at the end of the tunnel for Ennis. There's a kind of metaphysical enigma I haven't seen in a film since "Vertigo," another masterpiece of love finding a tragic rocky road.

Anyway, I have not seen the DVD all the way through but checked out some of the most picturesque scenes on my PC. I think it will be even better on my 44" (it's having a new cathode ray tube installed so we are currently watching my 23" Dell LCD from my bedroom). The print and the transfer is excellent -- the sound even better than in the theater (as I suspected). I could now hear every line of Ennis' self-conscious drawl. I caught from just the few scenes more of the body english and looks in the eyes by the two protagonists that proclaimed how deep the attachment was between the two. Ang Lee followed a methodical and majestic frame of storytelling. It will seem slow to those who perhaps don't have that much interest in the story in the first place but I found it just perfect.

"Brokeback Mountain" Out (sic!) on DVD April 4th!

Lightwizard going to be there at 3 a.m. in a lounge chair a thermos and one of those giant foam cowboy hats.

Actually, I had two copies on pre-order from Amazon but now that I've seen that Target has the special edition with the audio CD of the short story, I'm going to end up with another (two will be given as gifts).

Give one to Tico.

With a big kiss.

LW- I had sealed the envelope to mail the movie back to Blockbuster. I think that maybe I will keep it, and watch it again. I see where you are coming from. Apparently, this movie, (like Vertigo) is one that needs to be seen a few times. Now that I know the story, I believe that I need to watch it again to pick up on the subtleties.

I think "Brokeback" should have also received the Oscar for cinematography. Without looking staged, Ang Lee managed to make Jack and Ennis iconic and it's obviously working. One of the largest forums ever put up on the internet is Ultimate Brokeback. The film's title has been number one search entry for many days on Google and was in the top ten for months. It's still number one at Amazon this morning and my nephew was setting up the displays yesterday during store hours and people were already grabbing them off the shelves -- during one of the biggest storms of the season here in the OC.

I have understood a lot more about the story by reading it and watching the film again. Jake Gyllenhall mentions in one of the interviews that there is a metaphysical quality to the telling of the tale on film, but there is also a spiritual quality.

I watched it last night with my nephew who is straight -- he immediately stated it was a much better film than "Crash" and wanted to know what other Ang Lee films he should see besides "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" (which bears a lot of relationship to this film and requires more than one viewing).

Amigo -- Tico would never be brave enough to watch the film -- like Larry David, it could be hazerdous to his mental health.

LW- I just could not resist. I scissored open my copy of "Brokeback", and watched it all over again.

It is much better the second time around. The first time you get to see the story, the second you catch the nuances. Now I really understand why Ang Lee got the Oscar for direction.

After I posted this morning, I started reading some of the reviews.



Link to review

I saw something in one of the very first scenes. I think that the spark had been igniting within Jack, before the two of them were even up on the mountain. If I had not known what the movie was about, I never would have picked up on it. When Jack and Ennis are waiting outside to see the range boss (Quaid) you see that Jack is looking at the image of Ennis in the side view mirror of his truck.

In another scene, when Ennis is leaving, you see Jack looking longingly agian at Ennis' image in the side view mirror.

There is no doubt in my mind that "Brokeback was a far better movie than "Crash". Oh, LW thanks for the tip about "Ultimate Brokeback". I have never heard of it before. Now I have to take a look. Thanks!

Yeah, there's a heavy implication that Jack is just plain gay but trying to hide it, while Ennis' attraction is specific to Jack.

That's a divergence from the story, btw. In the story it's just another typical night/ morning (forget when it happens) in their tent, when Ennis decides to take things in hand. It's not a very romantic start, really, no gazes or anything. Ennis is pretty matter-of-fact about it.

In the story, it's clear that Jack's interested in Ennis but assumes nothing can come of it, and Ennis knows and eventually decides what the heck.

Then it develops from there.

I don't believe in the story that Proulx would have even attempted to define any physical attraction although there is an emotional bonding taking place. Visually, Ang Lee was able to subtly add scenes where Jack is discretely showing an attraction to Ennis. Ennis may be but he is so emotionally ingrown, his actions don't overtly show anything. One can only implant thoughts about what they are both thinking on the second viewing.

Lee is quite frankly a genius in sublimity, even as good as Kubrick and Kurosawa. To think he was considering retiring from making movies. Please don't!!!

Incidentally, that scene after their first partying, finally showing Ennis privately letting a flood of emotions emerge in that doorway is devastating.

I tried to find the story online and can't -- have been able to when it's come up before. Phooey. Probably have thrown out the New Yorker that has it by now, too.

At any rate, Proulx managed to show that Jack was attracted though I don't remember how. The artistry of the film is undoubtedly Lee's ("The Wedding Banquet" is a favorite film of mine) but it all start's with Proulx's own artistry.

There are some lines in the short story that allude to an attraction -- The New Yorker has archived the piece for subscriber's only.

"The Wedding Banquet" is a precusor to Brokeback, and although it's a comedy, the frictions that develop between Andrew, Wai-Tung and the secretary concerning the deception begin to get rather serious.

I'm a subscriber, can you point me to it?

Thanks!

Not coming up in any search now -- possibly because of the new book that were publisheds.

BTW, first days sales of the DVD is a whopping 1.4 million copies!

I hope that the general audience will appreciate this very special film!