Why Brokeback Mountain lost Academy Award to Crash

Rating: Null/10 (11 December 2006)

Danitza I. Gonzales HUM FINAL Dec. 11, 2006 Brokeback Mountain vs. Crash
In my opinion Crash won the Academy Award instead of Brokeback Mountain because it encompassed social issues that people of different races, ages, and social classes can relate to. As opposed to Brokeback Mountain, the film Crash was able to reach the audience and attain a sense of empathy. The film also allows the viewer to sympathize and connect with the characters, because there are a multitude of social issues to consider under the circumstances the film portrays. Brokeback Mountain strictly focuses on the difficulties that a homosexual couple faces during the early 60's. The time frame covered in Brokeback Mountain itself poses as a roadblock inhibiting the audience from deeply relating to the film's content because it takes place in a distant setting. This is amplified by the fact that most of its questionable behavior(s) occurs in the mountains away from the general population. Since the early 60's, many American's frame of mind have changed and homosexual advocacy movements have made notable progress. These advances in civil rights for the homosexual community make some of the circumstances portrayed in the film irrelevant to present day and age. Crash displays a more accurate picture of present American society. Crash, successfully makes its main points: racism, prejudices, and stereotypes are still alive in the United States and affect millions daily. More importantly Crash allows the viewer to understand why these behaviors are problematic and especially conflictive for people in minority groups. Crash is a powerful film because you are able to observe the flaws, shortcomings, and weaknesses in the characters; this helps make them more realistic and humanistic. Throughout different scenes in the movie some of the characters are able to validate themselves and correct the error of their ways. This is refreshing because you are comforted by positive features of human nature. At the same time, it is eye opening because it is truthful, sincerely depicted, and believable. Because the conflict in Brokeback Mountain was centered around the hardships that the protagonists face as homosexual men, it is alienating to viewers who cannot relate or do not wish to understand the dramatic psychological, social, and emotional effects resulting from the stigma associated with homosexuality. The fact that the two characters personified rugged, "gay", cowboys, I found to be cliché and this made it incredibly hard to relate and understand these characters personally. To make my point I watched the film with a young heterosexual African American male; his reaction to the movie was that of repulse and un-acceptance to the film content and delivery. Like my movie-buddy, many viewers may have found themselves shutting out and away from the message that the film may have tried to deliver because it cannot be universally applied to all groups and their morals/belief systems. With no need for elaborate detail, Crash offered an accurate portrayal of present American society and applicable social issues. On any given day you can watch the news and hear about police brutality or incidents of blatant discriminatory acts and behaviors. One extraordinary example of how Crash accurately reflects American culture is through its use and depiction of Mid-Eastern characters. This is pertinent to current events because this minority group has become extremely susceptible to prejudice and discrimination in the aftermath of 9-11. I did not feel as if Brokeback Mountain was reflective of or applicable to a general population because it dealt only with homosexuality. Also, as noted earlier the plot takes place over four decades ago, making the viewer unable to relate unless they personally lived through that era. After watching both films and reading Annie Proulx's Blood on the red carpet I felt that the 78th Academy Award went to the better movie. I do not think that Brokeback Mountain's loss is attributed to people feeling uneasy about graphic illustrations of homosexual relationships and sex (although that may be a possibility nonetheless). Instead, I think that Crash was picked because it reached a broader audience and raised awareness towards racial and ethnic inequality; which is more commonly experienced and suffered throughout racial and ethnic lines. By exposing common stereotypes and prejudices it conveys the message that mass scale changes are necessary for the progress of our country and all its diverse groups of people.