Brokeback Mountain? Is it really all its hyped up to be?

Rating: 6/10 (21 January 2006)

I decided to watch this movie because of Heath Ledger. I wanted to see if he could master this role. I was pleasantly surprised when he did. He is superb in this movie and so is Jake J. However, the movie is a bit disturbing and for lack of better word, "wierd." While it is a romance movie, it is a very aggressive and abusive type of romance. The two lovers (Heath and Jake) are always fighting--in fact, they've both made each other bleed on occasion. The first "love" scene is extremely frightening at first in its explosive passion. (Jake fights Heath for sex.) I think that the plot is mediocre at best. There's a scene with a bear somewhere along the way, and nothing happens. I expected the bear to attack Heath and for Jake to come along and rescue him, further enhancing their bond with each other--but no, the horses run away and so does Heath? While the movie addressed issues that need to be brought to the light like the inability of a person to choose who to love, it lacked depth. It dragged for most of the time, and then it ended abruptly. I think that another director could have really captured the emotions and thoughts of the characters in a much better way--making this film much better than it actually was.