Must be seen twice

Rating: 10/10 (17 December 2005)

Possibly the greatest film I have ever seen. Period.
I didn't think it possible that anyone could beat Philip Seymour Hoffman's portrayal of Truman Capote this year, but by golly Heath Ledger DID it. His portrayal of ranch hand Ennis Del Mar is the most real thing I have ever seen. I will go even further: every actor who performs for even a second in this film is absolute perfection. It could not have been better acted or put together.
Ang Lee has proved that he is a genius with this film. If he does not win the Oscar for Best Director, I will know that something is rotten in Denmark. His work here was simply unbeatable. Unsurpassable.
I recommend reading the story as well as seeing the movie, and I recommend seeing the movie at least twice. Ang Lee has packed every moment with so much, that I do think it is essential to see it more than once to FULLY appreciate all that this film has to offer.
Many men have written to author Annie Proulx to tell her "You have told my story." It is a true-life western story that is way past due being told. It is the real life story of many ranch hands, cowboys, and farmers, and it is a shame that the world is only now seeing and hearing their story. I have never been a cowboy, yet it mirrored my own life to an amazing degree nonetheless. I could relate 100% with every single frame... at times I did feel as though my own story was being told, even though my story took place in the southeast rather than the West.
See this film. It will be a historical landmark film for the ages.