mountaintops vs. lives of quiet desperation, a heterosexual take

Rating: 7/10 (30 January 2006)

While I had no knowledge that the movie was about gay cowboys, I went to see a love story of intense romanticism which might make me cry to get me a peak experience before a great scientist spoke the next day.
I am a heterosexual and struggled to find aspects of my identity portrayed in this movie. This movie wasn't sad in an inspirational sense to me as was "Memoirs of a Geisha". The notion of retreat into fabulous mountain scenes from a world of unfulfilling employment to just keep barely above poverty level resonated with my not wishing to lead a life of quiet desperation.
It seemed to merely emphasize how obsessive passion can ruin lives. Quiet humble desperation doesn't fulfill a life either. Passion can be good, not only the passion of good "family values" but perhaps something a bit less localized in time, perhaps a connection to humanity not founded in genetic replication into the next generation, rather scholarship into a few generations more.
Warnings against obsessive passion miss the beauty of a magnificent obsession confounding all passion in life to other than family values "the ways of the flesh". In my later years, I am now seeking connection or commitment to humanity in my science, perhaps with no children of my own, although children are a joy to me independent of sexual involvement with their parents. I've heard that connection to one's own offspring is intensely visceral and I may indeed be missing something as equally profound as scholarship.
The movie portrays the innocent, Ennis Del Mar, as losing innocence with predatory male archetype gone awry, Jack Twist, who he, in his continued innocence, misguidedly feels somewhat sorry enough for not to break up with. Perception of any sexual overture by a male being predatory can be projected by heterosexual males onto gays with tragic results to humanity. A misunderstanding of the passions because they are unspoken can lead to bottled up pain that explodes in tragic violence. One sees the characteristic instability of three way relationships, irregardless of sexual preference, and this has been studied and verified by credible sources.
Perhaps this movie speaks the bottled pain (and potential violence) of all parties to such deception.
We have an unfortunate world now, a world unfortunate not only that it has predators, but also that it perhaps too easily perceives "male behaviors" as predatory. The movie, however, perceives Lureen Newsome as a businessman exhibiting such predatory male behaviors, a woman avoiding responsibilities with the children and predatory with a degree, at least, of owned shame.
Integrating predatory and nurturing natures requires a long trek for Penguins, so for men and women of this century, probably an even longer one. I myself can't fathom it.
While it seemed to simply reiterate warnings of the bible against sodomy with a beautiful musical soundtrack and mountain backdrop, there might have been another message more profound spoken by "Ennis Del Mar" choosing not to work but rather attend his daughters wedding which might have been, for him, another mountaintop experience, that of his daughter's unconditional love.