Image Courtesy of Amazon.com
Director :
Ang Lee
Cast :
Jake Gyllenhaal……….Jack Twist
Heath Ledger……….Ennis Del Mar
Michelle Williams……….Alma Beers Del Mar
Anne Hathaway……….Lureen Newsome Twist
Randy Quaid……….Joe Aguirre
The Movie
In all the hoopla, backlash and genuine shock at the end of the most recent Academy Awards, the thing that seems to be missing in all the debate was that it was a debate between great movies. And while Brokeback Mountain may have lost an award, but awards come and go. Great films will be remembered long after Oscar’s shine has worn off.
Brokeback Mountain centers on Ennis (Heath Ledger) and Jack (Jake Gyllenhaal). Hired by Joe Aguirre (Randy Quaid) to watch over some sheep grazing on Brokeback Mountain, the two men are quite opposites from the beginning. Ennis is a quiet man, raised by his siblings for most of his life. He’s used to being alone and doesn’t talk much. Jack works at other places in between helping out on his parents’ ranch. Stuck on the mountain together while they shepherd Aguirre’s flock of sheep, Ennis and Jack form a bond. On a cold night on the mountain Ennis ends up sleeping in the same tent as Jack and the bond goes from friendship into a sexual relationship. When they’re time on the mountain ends so does their relationship, as they have lives to get back to. Ennis is going to marry Alma (Michelle Williams) while Jack is going home. From here we follow them through the next 20 years of their lives, as Ennis has two daughters and Jack gets married to Lureen (Anne Hathaway) and fathers a son. But the sort of love they have for each other continues, as we see how they try and hide it (and their infrequent visitations with each other) from the world. It’s a majestic film that takes a serious look at its pair of lovers; they (and the audience) know that what they have they can’t keep except in those moments when they go “fishing.”
What makes the film so special is the romance itself. While Ledger and Gyllenhaal are generally the type to play the male lead in a romantic comedy, they have a wonderful chemistry with each other. They don’t play their characters as any sort of gay stereotype or as some sort of flirtation; this is a grand love affair, a passion they can’t capture anywhere else but with each other. There’s a certain ease they have together in tender embraces and emotional moments; it’s easy to believe they’re in love because there isn’t any sort of hesitation or awkwardness. They’re friends, they’re men and they’re lovers.
It’s a pair of amazing performances from the two as well. Ledger’s Ennis is a quiet man who’s seen the consequences of exposing himself and Jack’s relationship to the world. It’s a quiet strength as he tries to be a good father, a good husband and a good worker and seems to let the world haunt his path while Jack is a man who knows what we wants and knows that somehow he will never get it.
It doesn’t hurt that the film has a strong direction from Ang Lee. Lee wisely lets the film develop slowly with a deliberate pace. He infuses a great drama with some shots of majestic Wyoming, using the setting to its utmost potential. There aren’t too many twists and turns but at the end of this tragic tale of romance but Lee lets his drama develop over time, as he allows his characters to develop fully and completely.
Score : 10 / 10
The Video
Presented in a widescreen format with a 1.85:1 aspect ratio, the DVD version of Brokeback Mountain has a great transfer. For a film with lots of big epic cinematography and subtle coloring, Lee’s vision comes through wonderfully.
The Audio
Presented in a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound, the film sounds wonderful. For a film that has a terrific score as well as lots of dialogue, the audio takes advantage of the surround sound admirably.
The Extras
Sharing the Story: The Making of Brokeback Mountain is a Logo Movie Special about the film. It’s a big EPK feature about the film, with nothing really of note said.
Directing from the Heart: Ang Lee focuses on Lee’s unique abilities as they relate to the film. With members of the cast and production crew, it’s interesting to hear the people who work with him talk about how he directs. This isn’t your usual ‘he was wonderful’ kind of material, it’s a seven minute piece about the nuances Lee uses and the sort of shots and the style he uses. It’s fairly informative for being a relatively short piece.
On Being A Cowboy is a featurette focusing on how the cast was developed in terms of the physical abilities like riding a horse, etc. It’s interesting to hear how the cast had to train, as Ledger already knew how to ride and the rest had to learn how so they wouldn’t be able to fake it. Running around six minutes, it focuses on the few stunts in the film.
From Script to Screen: Interviews with Larry McMurtry & Diana Ossana is a feature focusing on how the film started from being a short story and developed into a screenplay. It’s interesting to hear McMurtry and Ossana talk about the process of developing a short novel into a 100 page screenplay, needing to add in scenes and whatnot to make it into a feature length script.
Score : 6 / 10
