BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN

by Joe Barber on Dec.24, 2005, under Joe Barber's Movie Reviews

JOE’S REVIEW:”BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN”

Director Ang Lee’s (”The Ice Storm”, “Ride With The Devil”, “Sense and
Sensibility”) modern day cowboy romance, “Brokeback Mountain”, has drawn a great deal of attention because its romantic conflict involves two men in love with each other. While that element of the movie may be ground breaking for a mainstream movie, there is more than just a gay love story worth noting here. There are also elements missing that keep this generally well made film from acchieving greatness.

Set in the rugged mountain country of the Northwest, “Mountain” begins in 1963, as two young men, Ennis Del Mar (Heath Ledger) and Jack Twist (Jake
Gyllenhaal) are hired to spend the late summer and early fall keeping an eye on a herd of sheep grazing on the border between privately owned land and government parkland. Technically, the presence of cowboys overnight is illegal, but the rancher who hires them insistss they remain on the mountasin day and night to gaurd againts predators.

The two barely say a word to each other at first, bvut slowly get to know each other and to enjoy their solitary job. One night, their emotions catch fire and the duo discover the depth of their feelings for each other.
Despite the discovery of their emotional connection, the two go their separate ways at the end of their job. Ennis return to his hometown in Texas to marry his high school sweetheart, Alma. Jake drifts from town to town, taking odd jobs, including rodeo work.

As the years go by, the two get together for fishing and hunting trips that renew their secret, unshakeable ties to each other. They struggle,both with their attraction to each other and the strain their secret puts on Ennis’
marriage. That strain extends to Jack’s impulsive union with a wealthy rodeo queen (Anne Hathaway). As the years pass, Ennis and Jack risk both exposure and estrangement from each other, as both men fight to figure out what direction to take their lives and relationships.

As usual, Lee and his cinematographer, Rodrigo Prieto, utilize the visual elements as a backdrop to and commentary on the behavior of the movie’s central chharacters. The land is rough, untamed, beautiful and dangerous.
The wide open spaces reveal and conceal many things. The shear bhysical beauty of the land adds an extra layer to the story.

Screenwriters Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana have worked hard to open and deepen the short story, written by Annie Proulx, that sered as the basis for the script. While the strong, complex performance of Ledger adds depth to the film, the script lets down the actors and audience in other places.
Gyllenhaal never gets a firm grasp on who Jack is or what drives him. Both of the female characters are sketchilly drawn, giving Williams and Hathaway little to do. There’s more to the story and these men’s lives than their time together, but the screenwriters and director hardly seem to care.
Ironically, it is Ledger’s emotionally restrained Ennis who delivers the most emotionally engaging performance.

Though it takes a number of bold chances and often succeeds, “Brokeback Mountain”, like its leading characters, still has much to share by the time of its final fade out. That it goes as far as it does is admirable. That it doesn’t explore more thoroughly is its-and our-loss.

MPAA RATING: R for profanity, brief nudity, sexual content and violence.
JOE’S RATING: THREE STARS.