They are cowboys, and they are gay.

[jlh]

I doubt that I can make a post that does justice to how Brokeback Mountain made me feel. I can say that it is every bit as gorgeous as the Annie Proulx story that I read in the New Yorker in the fall of 1997. There was this moment, when they first touch romantically, when I thought, "My god, I am watching two established, currently 'hot' movie stars playing two men in love without hesitation." We saw the film in a room full of gay men in the East Village (and also, interestingly, Elizabeth Berkeley; Maya said, "Oh, I just loved her in Saved by the Bell!") and if you can swing that, I recommend it.

By the way, if your man doesn't want to see it, show him the straight dude's guide to Brokeback Mountain.

It should be noted that I generally hate stories of doomed love and am a stickler for happy endings. Maya and I were talking about this as we walked to the subway and agreed that love that is doomed because one character just can't deal with being ostracized socially, or live without money or status, is pretty lame. Often, the love is doomed because of general stupidity and selfishness and that, I cannot stand (eg, The Way We Were, or the main plot in The English Patient). But when they cannot be together because of circumstances truly larger than themselves—like, say, "you are a French-Canadian nurse and I am a Sexy Sikh" from the English Patient—and when the lovers never deny their feelings or renounce each other, then I can get down with that. It's Wyoming wilderness in the 60s and 70s--no, they cannot live together on a ranch and grow old. Hell, you can barely be gay in the Wyoming wilderness now without being beat up for your trouble, and the ghost of Matthew Shepard haunted the film for me; odd that Proulx's story was published almost precisely a year before that event. They never truly separate, never deny their feelings, and for me that was really enough to be satisfying.

I say again, I want to see every movie with Maya, who noted that her eyes were dry at the end. Mine weren't, which both did and didn't surprise me since I knew well what was coming. However, I will say that while Maya might not have been crying, she was keening, albeit softly: "Jack, Jack, Jack!" I reckon that Maya, keening, is entirely appropriate.

Non-spoilery: It's as gorgeous as it should be, so thank you Ang Lee for that and so much more. It is just about a perfect adaptation of the story, which The New Yorker has made available online, so bravo to Lonesome Dove writer Larry McMurtry and his wife Diana Ossana for the script. Thank god they grabbed the rights for the story so quickly, as they were the ones who needed to adapt it. It is perfectly cast and has an amazing score. I'm not sure what else is going to open between now and the end of the year that will truly rival it for Best Picture. It's that good.

The outing was in honor of ladyjaida's birthday, and we had awesome (and dead cheap!) Burmese food beforehand and bubble tea after and it was a great evening.

Comments

[locumtenens.livejournal.com]

Oh, god. I am practically twitching to see this movie!

But, of course, it is not open here and will not be for a while. *emo sigh* I will settle for your recap and being insanely jealous, I suppose.

[sarahtales.livejournal.com]

YOU AND ME AND NARNIA, BABY. Movie buddies forevah.

[evil-erato.livejournal.com]

I am a million kinds of jealous that you have already seen it. But yay - I'm glad it was done so well. I can't wait to go see it!

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

You totally put your finger on why you can't just dismiss it as a doomed love thing. Jack's dreams are, sadly, unrealistic. But you have to love him for having them, and hate that they are unrealistic.

I love it too.

[jlh.livejournal.com]

I think Ennis loves him for having them, even if they frustrate him. Though there is a sense in the story, too, that Jack isn't necessarily unrealistic, that he would just rather have spent his time with Ennis than doing anything else, that he probably heard Ennis's story about the man beat up with the tire iron and thought, well, at least he lived with his love before he died. I hadn't thought of it before, but in a way you could say that Jack is even more fatalistic than Ennis.

It is so good I don't have vocabulary for it.

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

You know, I think you're right. Jack is the one who seems to have decided that half-living is no living at all, so the tire iron is something he's willing to risk.

What's great is that Ennis' fears are understandable as well.

[weatherby.livejournal.com]

I haven't read the spoilers here, or the story, but I must say I was so delighted when I watched the trailers and saw Larry McMurtry had done the script. Really, is there anyone better for cowboys just in general? Lonesome Dove, a largely misjudged book in my opinion, probably because of the cheesy tv show.