A moving picture in every sense of the term

Rating: 10/10 (19 January 2006)

Brokeback Mountain is literally a moving picture...not of the motion and camera sense, but of the emotional sense. I came away from this movie with so much sympathy for a character (Ennis Del Mar) who would likely not want to evoke much sympathy for himself whatsoever from anyone. How wonderful that Heath Ledger can convey that feeling to the audience through his laconic speech patterns and body language. Heath as Ennis simply stole the show, and as a result we finally have another movie where the protagonist is real and so palpable that you ache for him in the moments where he stops to grieve for the bad hand life has dealt him.
Jake Gyllenhall as Jack was a very nice surprise to me. Tragic and beautiful is the best way to describe Jake's Jack Twist, who is versatile enough in his character to either frustrate you with his reckless behavior or break your heart with his incredibly emotive and sad eyes. Jack wants so little but seems to be asking an awful lot, friend...
The supporting cast was also excellent and did their best in presenting their characters memorably while not detracting from the simple love story that's struggling to survive. The entire production itself was grand, and it's amazing such powerful work was done in this day and age with so little money. How fitting for a movie that knocks you over with an eagle's feather.