The "gay-cowboy" movie no longer!

Rating: 8/10 (9 December 2006)

Simply breath-taking. A love story that will literally take your breath away, showing that love is indeed, a force of nature. To be honest, I had been intrigued by this film long before it hit the big screen. There had been many rumours circulating about it and I must admit that I was very interested as to how Ang Lee would tackle this complicated love story. The obvious issue would be that it is the first Hollywood movie that would have the main romance as a homosexual relationship. He achieves miraculous heights, the direction is simply perfect. I was worried that Annie Proulx's short story would be turned into a hopeless Hollywood love flick, thankfully, that right man was in the director's chair. The finished product shows a brutal, stressful and problematic relationship that was doomed to failure. This is also huge praise to the two young actors who undertake amazingly brave and difficult roles. The impact that Ledger's final show of emotion on Brokeback had on the viewer was stunning and Gyllenhaal is brilliant, hopelessly and optimistically in love, his performance really knocks the stuffing out of the audience. Williams is the most wonderful young actress, her shock and pain is so clearly seen and felt by the viewer. I really recommend not to let your prejudices keep you from seeing this movie, as by the time the relationship gets off the ground you have completely forgotten about the sexuality of the characters and can only see the fabulous love story unfolding before your eyes. This film comes highly recommended!