Overrated

Rating: 6/10 (17 February 2006)

While I think "Brokeback Mountain" was well-acted and directed, it's probably one of the most over-hyped movies of 2005. The subject matter could have been handled in a more delicate manner. For example, the opening sex scene in the tent between Heath Ledger and Jake Gylenhaal could have been displayed with a shot of the tent exterior and the camera slowly drawing back from the tent while the audience hears the sounds of sex coming from inside the tent. Today, however, Hollywood feels that everything involving a sexual and violent nature must be displayed graphically.
I cannot feel any sympathy for Ledger's character. Not only does he feel it is appropriate for him and Gylenhaal to publicly display their homosexuality in front of Ledger's wife and children, but whenever he and Gylenhaal experience a disturbance in their relationship, he responds by berating his wife and threatening her with a beating.
To me, this is just another gay-friendly movie with a twist. If it wins for Best Picture at the Oscars, it will prove that enough audiences and critics have been fooled yet again by the "Hollywood Hype".