One Curve on the Road

Rating: 8/10 (18 December 2005)

Greetings again from the darkness. One of the most anticipated films of the year, "Brokeback Mountain" is a beautiful trip down a painful road. Based on the short story of Annie Proulx, the great Larry McMurtry has provided a screenplay that is both effective and affective. Director Ang Lee ("Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon") does the rest.
The two lead characters played by Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger are very solid - Ledger is even exceptional in parts with his marble-mouth manner of speech. However, the two things that take this film to greatness are the painful story and the stunning photography. Although postcards play a role in the story, numerous shots in the film are as beautiful as any postcard or painting ever seen. Lee proves again that his eye for nature is without equal.
If one can view this as a forsaken love story rather than a gay cowboy movie, the impact proves much greater - even powerful. While Gylenhaal's Jack "f'n" Twist finds an easy way to cope, Ledger's Ennis continues his lifelong struggle with merely existing. His attempts at relationships are always missing something and we have no problem believing this is due to his very rough childhood. His marriage to Michelle Williams (Ledger's real life squeeze) is torturous to watch and she is marvelous in her discovering the truth about her husband. Randy Quaid has a nice turn as the boss who first hires Gylenhaal and Ledger, and Anne Hathaway is fine as Mrs. Twist.
The real credit for this masterpiece goes to Lee, McMurtry and Proulx. A haunting guitar theme compliments a monumental piece of film story telling that covers two decades of forbidden and stolen love. Not always easy to watch, but definitely worth it.