good beginning, but ending was left disappointed (moderate spoiler)

Rating: 7/10 (22 December 2005)

Everyone has been talking about this film, and it's easy to see why. The story is original; the direction is superb; the actors are believable; the scenery is breathtaking. Having said that however, I had two minor issues with the film. And no, neither one of them had to do with the main characters being gay. I'm not sure if it was the dynamics and complexity of the character Mr. Ledger played, or if it was Mr. Ledger himself as an actor, but I felt as though he was uncomfortable on screen. It almost seemed as if was uncomfortable playing an uncomfortable and confused gay cowboy. Mr. Gyllenhall was excellent and really "owned" the character I thought, but after the first 45 or so minutes, Mr. Ledger seemed less and less comfortable with Mr. Gyllenhall, almost as if playing a gay cowboy was going to make him gay. Nonetheless, the performance he carried for the majority of the film was powerful and quite strong. Secondly, I felt throughout the movie, especially in the last hour, that Mr. Lee was letting the movie get away from him. The first part of the film blended wonderfully and I got involved with the characters. The scenes with Mr. Ledger and Mr. Gyllenhall were tastefully done, and the story moved flawlessly from one scene to the next, letting the story move it along. However, at the midway point, something happened. I think Mr. Lee tried too hard to then fit the next 2 decades of the characters' lives together in one hour, an it just didn't fit and it didn't work. I was constantly having to figure out time and age of the characters as it moved along in the last hour, and some of the scenes left me scratching my head, trying to figure out why it was placed in the film to begin with. Also, I think in the last part of the film, Mr. Lee got wrapped up in the scenery and tried to use it as a vehicle to tell the story, instead of having the story itself tell the story, with the scenery in the background, like it was in the first hour of the film. A good story all around, but just felt at the hour mark, Mr. Lee changed what he had done in the first hour, and it got away from him. The only saving grace to the last hour of the film was the final scene. Very powerful. Go in open-minded and you will walk out pleasantly surprised.