A Film About the Power of Love

Rating: 10/10 (20 February 2006)

BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN is both a tragic love story and an indictment of bigoted, conservative, Bible-waving America. It shows us in careful detail the development of a special relationship between two men, Ennis Del Mar and Jack Twist, cowboys hired to tend to a flock of sheep in the mountains of Wyoming during the summer of '63. Based on the short-story by Annie Proulx, which was adapted to the screen by Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana, the Ang Lee film is a masterwork of restraint, subtle yet firm, stark and ultimately indelible in the power of its images. Lee shows us how his two characters are victims of their home environments, limited by poverty and the effects of a conservative upbringing that is psychologically destructive and dehumanizing. Ennis is particularly affected by his personal history, which leads him to be uptight, guarded, emotionally boxed-in; in spite of the hardships of his past and present, Jack is better able to deal with his feelings and express them, both verbally and physically. Set against the splendors of nature, the awakening of love between these men is one of the most breathtakingly beautiful sequences in film history. Never before have I witnessed a film that portrays so well the yearning for love as it imposes itself upon spirits repressed by years of conservative upbringing. And when Ennis and Jack make love for the first time, they are like two cougars mating. All their subsequent love scenes have a sense of urgency, they are violent and lyrical. There is great purity in these men. These are lovers who are not touched by the degrading effects of voluptuousness. As life starts to separate them, one keeps hoping that they will have a chance to be happy together. Ennis's reluctance and inability to fully commit to their relationship eventually brings about the tragic ending. The murder of Jack Twist gives the final scenes an eerie feeling, a special quality of despair that is all the more poignant due to the sober treatment that each individual image is given. BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN is a fundamentally important work. Ang Lee has been justly praised for his sure touch, his highly dignified yet bold and realistic vision of the material. The acting is superlative in every sense. Heath Ledger does wonderful things to express his character's introversion, his deep sensibility beneath a rugged, taciturn, insensitive facade. Jake Gyllenhaal is admirably adept at showing his character's longing for Ennis. His Jack is a jewel of a man: brave, generous, warm, willing to defy society in order to affirm his right to love Ennis. The entire cast deserves recognition for its impeccable ensemble work. Screenplay, cinematography, art direction, music, all contribute to making BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN a superior piece of cinema. Finally, I have the feeling that Brokeback Mountain was indeed the perfect place for these lovers to exist and be together. Its pristine beauty is the perfect setting for the story of a love that is as pure as nature itself.