If you follow movies at all, chances are good that by now you've heard at least something about Brokeback Mountain
Ang Lee's so-called gay cowboy movie. The buzz surrounding it has led to a $51 million gross to date, and eight Academy Award nominations will surely lead to continuing business. But take away the fact that both of the lovers in this film are male, and what you're left with is a well-made but rather bland love story.
Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal are Ennis Del Mar and Jack Twist, respectively. Both spend a summer working on the titular mountain. Amid tending sheep, eating beans and shooting animals, a romance ensues. Jack, the extrovert, is the one who initiates the affair with the hesitant, fearful Ennis, who is haunted by a childhood memory of brutality toward a gay man.
Of course, the summer ends and they part ways. Both get married -Ennis to Alma (Michelle Williams), Jack to Lureen (Anne Hathaway). But neither one can stop thinking about the other, leading to Jack's showing up on Ennis' doorstep four years after that fateful summer. The ensuing affair, played out in a series of fishing trips leads to a lot of heartbreak, both for the men and their wives.
Overall, the movie is put together well. Diana Ossana and Larry McMurtry (of The Last Picture Show and Lonesome Dove fame) contribute a screenplay (based on E. Annie Proulx's short story) that makes the characters sound accurate without coming off too hokey, though judging from the snickers from the teenagers sitting behind me in the theater, this feeling might not be universal. Unfortunately, they have the story take place over a period of more than 20 years, which is a stretch considering all that is done to age the characters is change hairstyles somewhat and give Gyllenhaal a mustache.
As for the acting, Ledger has been talked up the most, but for all the hype, I can't say I was exactly blown away by his performance. I know his character is supposed to be laconic and withdrawn, but his mumbles are difficult to decipher at times. Williams, another actor whose work in this film is being widely touted, isn't given much to do except stare off into space every time Ennis goes fishing. The rest of the cast is fine, but no one leaves a lasting impression, though Hathaway's topless scene has the potential to ruffle some feathers over at Disney, if it hasn't already.
Brokeback Mountain ends, predictably, on a sad note, but I couldn't help but feel I've seen this all before. Is it a bad film? No. But it's nothing special either.
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Ben Saylor
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Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger star in the cowboy love story Brokeback Mountain
which led movies this year with eight Oscar nominations.
