Brokeback Mountain Review and Response

[GypsySorcerer]

Originally Posted by dissention

He really has and deserves something for it. He's one of the main causes for movies suddenly becoming good and interesting once again.

I'm in love with him. Have you read this piece? http://msnbc.msn.com/id/11077661/site/newsweek/
Love the group pic, too.

Originally Posted by dissention

I think he's a cute (though not nearly on the same level as Sparky, but who does? ), but tonight he looked like a nine year old ring-bearer to me.

It's like I noticed him for the first time tonight. But, of course, I defer to Sparky on the Jakester.

[dissention]

Originally Posted by GypsySorcerer

I'm in love with him. Have you read this piece? http://msnbc.msn.com/id/11077661/site/newsweek/
Love the group pic, too.

He has such a goofball sense of humor, I love it!! Thanks for the link, I'm off to read it.

It's like I noticed him for the first time tonight.

He totally looked like a child tonight.

But, of course, I defer to Sparky on the Jakester.

You'd have to, he'd probably cut a bitch.

[GypsySorcerer]

Originally Posted by dissention

He totally looked like a child tonight.

Well, kind of. But still really cute.

[dissention]

Originally Posted by GypsySorcerer

Well, kind of. But still really cute.

Oh, sure. But jailbait cute. With a big dash of dorkiness due to that evil bow tie.

I was just happy to see that Ledger's teeth seemed whiter and less wonky. Perhaps he finally got that first bleach treatment. He's so fine until he opens his mouth and shows off them choppers, I'm telling ya.

[sparky]

Originally Posted by dissention

Who could have acted normal with Gyllenhaal's ridiculous bow tie less than two feet away? That thing was bigger than him.

I could pop that bow tie off him so fast, along with the rest of his clothes, that he would forget he ever had them on. I care not about the tie, only the hunk of burnin' Jake it resided upon tonight.

[stargazer99]

Originally Posted by dissention

We all watch movies in a way that's colored by our own preferences and experiences, and I personally never saw a performance by another actor that affected me as deeply as his in Brokeback Mountain. Watching him was like an out of body experience. It set the bar for me.

I went into this movie thinking that all the glowing reviews might ruin my experience. When people rave so much about a movie, I often tend to feel let down when I see it. But that wasn't the case at all with this movie, and particularly, with Heath's performance.

I'll be the first to admit that I'm far from an expert on acting. And I'm definitely no movie reviewer. I tend to be a very literal thinker. Because I'm a literal thinker, I've never done well in literature, art and film classes because I have a tough time interpreting complex, subjective pieces of work. I often have a tough time "getting" symbolism, etc., and do better with very straight forward material. But this movie, and Heath's performance in particular, did such a wonderful job of conveying so many emotions, etc., without spoon feeding them to me. His performance is the only performance I can remember that affected me like this. He did such a great job of conveying emotion with very few words. I could literally feel what the character was feeling. It was a very moving performance.

I haven't seen any of the other nominated performances, so I can't compare them to Heath's. But, IMHO, they'd have to be pretty damn spectacular to top Heath's performance in this movie.

Originally Posted by GypsySorcerer

I'm in love with him. Have you read this piece? http://msnbc.msn.com/id/11077661/site/newsweek/
Love the group pic, too.

I love him, too! And I have even more respect for him after reading and seeing several interviews with him this past year. Unfortunately, I haven't seen either of his movies yet, and probably will end up watching them on DVD.

Oh, and I love that picture. He's so adorable!

[DavidMn]

Originally Posted by sparky

I could pop that bow tie off him so fast, along with the rest of his clothes, that he would forget he ever had them on. I care not about the tie, only the hunk of burnin' Jake it resided upon tonight.

Amen brother!!

[Serrart]

Originally Posted by dissention

I would hardly call it inspired & complex. Good performance? Yeah. Nothing earthshattering or revelatory, especially by his standards. That would have to be his performance in Love, Liza. His take on Capote is what I would have expected from a gifted actor who studied Capote for a bit.



I don't agree and think you're giving Lee more credit than he deserves. The man has made **** movies for the past five years, but seeing a lot of them again after seeing Brokeback Mountain, I truly believe that he's got a range that's immeasurable. He disappears into the characters he plays like almost no other actor I've seen and it's almost jarring to see an interview with him because it becomes even more obvious how true that is. It's just a shame that he hasn't picked projects that, for the most part, are on par with his talent, especially since he seems so in love with acting. And it's a shame that it took this one movie for me to see what an actor he is.

We all watch movies in a way that's colored by our own preferences and experiences, and I personally never saw a performance by another actor that affected me as deeply as his in Brokeback Mountain. Watching him was like an out of body experience. It set the bar for me.



Meh.



I enjoy awards shows, but only when the people I want to win do.

We just have different point of views. You don't see Lee as a great director I think he's one of the best of his generation, and made my thesis at university about him. The only movies in his filmography that I find irrisolved, Ride With the Devil and Hulk, are for me more interesting that 90% of Hollywood nonsense.

2) You just discovered this immense talent that Heath Ledger is, although I can't forget that in 2005 he was non existent in The brothers Grimm (at least Damon was decent), and transformed Casanova in a demented Alfie (better that Law, but still...).

Time will tell who's right.

Romy

[BombaySapphire3]

Originally Posted by Serrart

We just have different point of views. You don't see Lee as a great director I think he's one of the best of his generation, and made my thesis at university about him. The only movies in his filmography that I find irrisolved, Ride With the Devil and Hulk, are for me more interesting that 90% of Hollywood nonsense.

2) You just discovered this immense talent that Heath Ledger is, although I can't forget that in 2005 he was non existent in The brothers Grimm (at least Damon was decent), and transformed Casanova in a demented Alfie (better that Law, but still...).

Time will tell who's right.

Romy

I thought Ride With The Devil was a very good film,capturing the era and location almost presciently well for a non American director .The Hulk IMO is his one misfire.

[Serrart]

Originally Posted by BombaySapphire3

I thought Ride With The Devil was a very good film,capturing the era and location almost presciently well for a non American director .The Hulk IMO is his one misfire.

I like a lot Ride With The Devil, especially for the scenes in the winter. Actually it seems now an ideal prologue to Brokeback Mountain. As a whole I find it loses some tension and intensity at times though.

Romy

[dissention]

Originally Posted by Serrart

2) You just discovered this immense talent that Heath Ledger is, although I can't forget that in 2005 he was non existent in The brothers Grimm (at least Damon was decent)

Everyone in that movie was nonexistent. It was a horrific excuse for a movie, actually. I want my money back.

and transformed Casanova in a demented Alfie (better that Law, but still...).

I enjoyed Casanova immensely. Lasse Hallstrom is one of very few directors that can take such ridiculous featherweight material and make it so magical that one forgets about the underlying stupidity of it all, which I find particularly amusing since he generally works with darker material.

Time will tell who's right.

There really is no right or wrong, just personal preference. I highly doubt that time will change my high opinion of his performance in Brokeback Mountain or that he's almost chameleon-like when it comes to the roles he plays. He could never make another movie and I'd still consider him a great actor.

[Serrart]

Originally Posted by dissention

Everyone in that movie was nonexistent. It was a horrific excuse for a movie, actually. I want my money back.

Oh well... I didn't pay to see it at least. When you'll have the immense urge to see it again I'll pay for the rental.

Originally Posted by dissention

I enjoyed Casanova immensely. Lasse Hallstrom is one of very few directors that can take such ridiculous featherweight material and make it so magical that one forgets about the underlying stupidity of it all, which I find particularly amusing since he generally works with darker material.

Such ridiculous featherlike material inspired one of Fellini's masterpieces and had in Sutherland an amazing leading actor. Casanova was a great writer, almost a philosopher and his duality with Don Juan deserved more attention and a better actor in the leading role. I'm sure Lasse Hallstrom could have found some real character to trash also in Sweden or Hollywood, without thinking to Italy.

By the way I don't want to say that Heath Ledger is a bad actor, I've never thought it, not even watching him in the teen movies. I think he has a lot of potential but still has a long road ahead to be able to express it. If he won the Oscars, good for him, it wouldn't be a scandal, but it's too soon.

Romy

[dissention]

Originally Posted by Serrart

Oh well... I didn't pay to see it at least. When you'll have the immense urge to see it again I'll pay for the rental.

While I'm touched by the offer, I'm pretty sure that's one urge that won't be taking me over anytime soon.

Such ridiculous featherlike material inspired one of Fellini's masterpieces and had in Sutherland an amazing leading actor. Casanova was a great writer, almost a philosopher and his duality with Don Juan deserved more attention and a better actor in the leading role. I'm sure Lasse Hallstrom could have found some real character to trash also in Sweden or Hollywood, without thinking to Italy.

And you expected Hallstrom to take a similar approach? Are you comparing the featherweight material found in his movie to that of the contents of Fellini's? No wonder you disliked it so greatly. I doubt I would have enjoyed it much at all if it was anything like Fellini's bloated masterpiece.

The only likeness to the actual Casanova is the name. It's as loosely based as movies get. Maybe if Hallstrom had found Chesty Morgan and put her in his movie he would have gained some more credibility.

By the way I don't want to say that Heath Ledger is a bad actor, I've never thought it, not even watching him in the teen movies. I think he has a lot of potential but still has a long road ahead to be able to express it. If he won the Oscars, good for him, it wouldn't be a scandal, but it's too soon.

We'll have to agree to disagree, as always. At least no one can accuse us of never having fun discussions, eh?

[Serrart]

Originally Posted by dissention

And you expected Hallstrom to take a similar approach? Are you comparing the featherweight material found in his movie to that of the contents of Fellini's? No wonder you disliked it so greatly. I doubt I would have enjoyed it much at all if it was anything like Fellini's bloated masterpiece.

The only likeness to the actual Casanova is the name. It's as loosely based as movies get. Maybe if Hallstrom had found Chesty Morgan and put her in his movie he would have gained some more credibility.

What I don' t like of Hallstrom is his tendency to compromise. I would have loved a real divertissement, a hilarious character assassination and he definitely had the culture to do it, but he preferred a trip to Disneyland for a young public that ignored his movie in any case. I think he has the talent to make great films but his recent choice to go for "cute movies" is discouraging.

Originally Posted by dissention

We'll have to agree to disagree, as always. At least no one can accuse us of never having fun discussions, eh?

I guess not.

Romy

[bikerchic]

Originally Posted by stargazer99

I live in one of the most conservative cities in the U.S. (Seriously. It was actually listed as one of the top 5 most conservative cities in the U.S. in some article I read.) You live in a very conservative city as well, correct?

The theater wasn't filled to capacity, but it was pretty full. All ages were pretty much represented. I saw everyone from a group of teenage girls to at least one or two older couples. There were a lot more women than men. The only men I saw were with wives or girlfriends.

I think a lot of peope were pretty moved by it. I noticed a lot of sniffling by the end of the movie. And the majority of the crowd sat there through the credits, and weren't saying much when they left the theater.

I was pretty pleasantly surprised by the overall response, considering I wanted to slap some people before the movie. One guy in the concession line joked to his wife that he bought two tickets for Brokeback Mountain, snickered, and told her she'd be seeing the movie by herself if she wanted to see it. She started to respond to him with what I believe was going to be a statement about her not being able to sit through it, but she was cutoff by the girl waiting on her. When they were walking away, I heard him say "It would be an agenda Oscar". When I walked into the theater, there was a group of women in front of me, who were talking about how their husbands refused to see it. One was saying she asked her husband why he didn't want to see a "#1 movie", and her husband said didn't want to see "Bareback Mountain." (I take it he's a Michael Savage lemming. )

Ok, I haven't read this whole thread, its just too long and I didn't want to read any spoilers. I really want to see this movie, but my husband won't go see it with me. Partly because he never goes to the show anyway and partly because he's homophobic, I guess I don't know how to explain him. I mean he love's girl on girl action (gay or straight) but is completly grossed out by two men. I guess that's pretty typical of a heterosexual male (you know, what would his biker buddies think) Anyhow, should I go see it alone or try to find a girlfriend that will go see it with me? Like I said this may have been discussed already but I can't read 27 pages right now