A must see film

Rating: 10/10 (20 February 2006)

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There is very little to say about a film that generate so much reaction. There is little to add to previous positive reactions. I agree with them all. This is a movie that touch you and stay in your mind long after you have seen it. The acting is superb and while Heath Ledger(Enis Del Mare) is excellent, he could not have done it with out all the actors around him and especially Jake Gyllenhaal(Jack Twist). The cinematography is beautiful and serve the film exceptionally. The music is simple but sneak to your heart like the film itself. I think this is one of the rare occasions where a film have managed to describe the word LOVE or the feeling of LOVE without being schmaltz or predictable or even to use the words I love you(the line: "I wish I knew how to quit you" is a classic quote-say to someone you love him with out uttering the word love) . One action can say more than a thousands words. Word can deceive you, actions do not.
After saying the above I can only add some point or react to other comments and give my own point of view.
For me the film starts slowly and I had difficulty getting into the story. Another difficulty for me, has been the fact that the film begins in what I can only describe as cliché way. But the clichés disappeared(as if director And Lee is saying: look beyond the clichés and see the people beyond the clichés) and by the end of the film I was caught with the characters and with the story. They and film itself have griped me in the heart and in the throat and didn't let go. There is no conciliation at the end nor there is a happy ending which can bring relief to the pain I have felt in me when the film end. Even the tears which were going down my cheek were tears of pain, not tears of comfort. The tears of comfort came several days later(but this is another story).
Some people claim that the gay element of the story should be ignored and that people should only see this as a film with the universal theme of love. I simply don't agree with this notion. I don't believe that the film would have the same impact if the characters were a man and a woman. A man & a woman don't have to fear for their life when they are in love with each other, as Enis point out to Jake twice in the film. The feeling that Enis express in one point that he think that everyone know about him is a common feeling for gay men in the closet. In short, stop pretending it's not a GAY love story. It is, and there is no way to look around this point.
The film treat the audience in the most respect. This is intelligence film making in its best. Director Ang Lee prefer mostly to hint about things than say them out open in the air. 3 examples come to my mind(although I am sure I can find some more). See how Lee show the passage of time. He does not use titles but use cloths, changes in appearance, music. Another point is how he show us how the encounter with Jake is more significant to Enis than he wish to admit. The 1st scene which come to mind is the one right after Enis & Jake come down from Brokeback Mountain and after parting Enis break into tears. This is an heart breaking scene. It show you with no words that Enis know that he had something special which he had never known before and may never know after. And he wants it so much. The 2nd scene is the sex scene with Alma. At a certain moment he turn her over and take her from behind.Without words you can understand that he wants to recapture the intimacy he had with Jake and for him this will be the only way he can get intimate or relive the experience.
I can go on and on talking about this film. I don't think I have enough space to say all I want to say. I will summarize by saying that this is a film that has became an instant classic and will be quoted and analysed in future to come. As with classic films, it will be parodied(I have seen already 2 on the internet and there are more to come).It is a film that will affect anyone who watch him. You can not stay indifferent to this film. Audience in general will be moved by the film. Gay audience will appreciate the respect the film shows to his characters. For the first time in many year Gay men are not treated as freaks or as buffoons but as people who need to overcome obstacles in the course of finding love and be loved.
In short. Go and see the film. It worth every penny or Dollar(or any other currency you use) you will pay for it.