Brokeback Mountain

[celandineb]

Went and saw this, finally, with SO today. I enjoyed it a great deal - in part because of the scenery, which is perhaps odd, but I spent enough of my childhood summers in the Rockies that I love these vistas. Not going to write a proper review of it. But have a few related thoughts to put down, mostly on the aspect of sexuality at this time.

Comments

[celandineb]

I think of gay as a social identity.

I can accept that as a working definition, although does that make "lesbian" also a social identity?

"Bisexual" certainly labels both Ennis and Jack accurately from a quasi-objective-scientific sort of standpoint, since each has sex with at least one man and one woman over the course of the story. But as I've said in a couple of other places, I don't actually like using labels like this, and particularly I don't like heterosexual, bisexual, homosexual because then all the emphasis is on who a person has sex with and I think that's an extremely limiting way to think about oneself or others.

Read your posts/discussions but don't have anything to add to them just now. ;-)

[celandineb]

Makes sense to me. *g*

Jack and Ennis have these emotional and other connections that go beyond sex. Certainly it started with sex, but obviously grew to something much more.

Yes. It is, quite simply, love. I think that both of them love their children, and have at least some affection for their wives... but it's not the same as the relationship with each other. To me the tragedy of the entire story is that society would define them in these very narrow terms of sexuality, and condemn them for it, so that they feel forced to deny that definition through both words and actions - thereby hurting others. That they love each other is not tragic - that they cannot live that love is.

[mistressofrohan]

I am absolutely dying to see this movie. It's still not arrived in our city, but I am sure it's only a matter of time. The trailer made me cry, big time!

As a funny aside, my Mum shocked me the other day when she mentioned wanting to see it. I said "YOU want to see 'Brokeback Mountain'?" She said, "Well sure, isn't it like 'Cold Mountain', and about the War and things?

*chokes*

"No Mum, it's about to gay cowboys who fall in love, and then have to deal with that love throughout the rest of their 'normal' lives."

*long, dry pause*

"Oh", she said. "I don't think I want to see that one."

Of course, the last movie she saw in the theatre was 'Anywhere but Here' with Susan Sarandon... and before that it was Titanic! LOL!

In the meantime, I did see Heath star in 'Casanova', which was utterly hilarious. The man sure can smoulder, whether it's in denims or velvets!

[celandineb]

I don't recollect seeing either actor in anything before, but I'm terrible about remembering that kind of thing - and if the actor is good, s/he'll disappear into the character enough that I actually won't recognize him/her again in another role. ;-)

Have to say that although several people warned that tissue would be needed, I did not shed a tear (whereas I did at King Kong!). It had a lot of emotional resonance for me, but didn't push my crying buttons. I think you'll really enjoy it when you get a chance to see it; if they were showing the trailer in your cinema I'd imagine they'll show the film eventually.

[neogrammarian]

Oh, goodness, C, if you haven't seen Donnie Darko, then you really must. It's fantastic. A real cult-hit.

[celandineb]

*hides face* No, I haven't seen it, don't actually know a thing about it! *goes to read synopsis* Er... sounds very, very strange. One of these days if I ever rent a film again I will put that on the list... and, ok, Jake Gyllenhaal was pretty darned hot in BM even though he is about a decade too young for me! [Major advantage to being bi-queer, I can drool over anyone... *winks*]

[profanglophilia]

I liked this last paragraph and totally agree. Why do we feel we can sum someone up in terms of whom they f***ed (or didn't f***) last night? It seems so narrow, so shallow. There is so much more to me than that. *I* am not my sexual preferences.

[celandineb]

Exactly. It's not that it's not a meaningful thing, who one has sex with, but it should not be the first and only thing that is used to describe someone. Nor should it be used to differentiate and discriminate, any more than race or sex or marital status or any of those other stupid census categories.