One gay cowboy movie too many

Rating: Null/10 (19 December 2005)

Kudos to Jake and Heath for taking on this challenge, but not even Ang Lee's direction could save this hackneyed Harlequin novel from the trash bin. Leaving aside the distracting and unlikely gay cowboy gimmick, the plot and drama were both predictable and melodramatic. The score, sound and cinematography are spectacular, and for better or for worse, Ang Lee is skillful enough as a director to bestow unwarranted gravitas on thin material (think Crouching Tiger and Hulk). But make no mistake, this source material is thin: instead of flying martial artists and giant green mutants, we have gay cowboys from the 60s. It's like a Saturday Night Live sketch lengthened and converted to a drama. Give Cinderella Man the Oscar next Spring - this film doesn't deserve it.