IN FRATERNAM MEAM: BROKE BACK MOUNTAIN.... THE MOVIE!!!

IN FRATERNAM MEAM

Sunday, January 15, 2006

BROKE BACK MOUNTAIN.... THE MOVIE!!!

Quality, timing rev 'Brokeback' buzz.

There's a moment in "Brokeback Mountain" when Ennis Del Mar tells his lover Jack Twist that the two must keep their relationship secret for fear of being caught "in the wrong place at the wrong time."

For the men )portrayed by Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal, respectively) whose relationsip begins on a Wyoming mountaintop in 1963, the sentiment is true and, ultimately,heartbreaking. The Ang Lee-directed film, however, seems to have arrived at just the right point in the historical/cultural timeline of the movies.

"Brokeback Mountain" is up for seven Globe Awards, has topped many film critics' 10-best lists and has been named the year's best film by critics groups in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Boston. The film is expected to bea major contender at the Academy Awards. It's generating a groundswell of buzz among average moviegoers, as well.

Why is there so much interest in this film about gay cowboys -- and why now? Does the widespread interest in the film indicate that the mainstream public is willing to consider gay and lesbian issues as entertainment? Or simply the general public's desire to watch a well made and acted movie?

Richard Dorment, articles, editor for Giant, a New York City based pop-culture magazine, believes audiences will simply be moved by the film's powerful story and performances. "If Brokeback MOuntain' wasnt a really good movie - which it is first and foremost -- there would'nt be this buzz", he said.

Peter Lehman, director of the Center for Film and Media Research at Arizona State UNiversity at Tempe, agrees that the public had become more tolerant of gays. Still, he says, "There are explicit images of the characters kissing and expressing tenderness - this is a finally major breakthrough in Hollywood cinema".

"Brokeback's" setting should halp audiences deal with its serious themes, Leman adds, "The audience is less disturbed if the story is act in a different time or culture. They can watch the movie and feel that because it happened in 1963 Wyoming, they're removed from it and it's safe".

(Source: Abstracted from an article in the Scripps HOward News Service by: Rachel Leibrock)

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UTAH CANCELLATION SPURS CRITICISM
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The state of Utake is on the hot seat after a Salt City ara theatre complex canceled a run of "Brokeback Mountain" less that two hours after the theatre owner was informed of the film's subject.

In Melbourne, Australia, for the film's premiere there, star Heath Ledger told Australia's Nine National News: "Personally, I don't think the movie is controversial, but I think maybe the Mormons in Utah do. I think it's hilarious and very immature of a scoeity".

Ledger's comments were the latest in a flurry of reactions in Utah and around the world, since the Larry H. Miller owned theatre yanked the movie last week. Articles about the snub have made international headlines. NBC's Jay Leno and MSNBS's Keith Olbermann joked about it on the air this week. An Ohio movie critic wrote that he could "sniff bigotry from approximately 2,000 miles away."

Miller, who also owns NBA's Utah Jazz, had said nothing publicly about pulling the provocative film.

In response to the move, a Utah gay-rights organizaiton is encouraging its 2,500 members to shun Miller's businesses, which also include a sting of car dealerships.

(Source: Scripps Howard News Service; ASSOCIATED PRESS)

posted by infraternam meam @ 11:53 PM

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