Beautiful love story and period-piece

Rating: 10/10 (8 January 2006)

Best film of 2005
Brokeback Mountain is the story of two western young men who fall in love, what they are allowed to do about it by the time and place in which they reside, and what they do end up doing about it. It is also a story of developing the courage to be the person you want to be, regardless of the costs. The film walks the line between touching and gut-wrenching in its emotional impact, and should probably only be seen in an emotionally strong frame of mind.
Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal give the best performances I have seen either of them give, playing two guys whose love for each other defies society, and at least early on, their own self-concepts as well. The two men choose to lead double-lives rather than giving up what they have found together. Yet their secrets threaten everything.
The film is less dialog-based than the usual contemporary character study. Some of the most memorable scenes have very little chat. This method allows the viewer to allow his or her imagination to enter the story, giving a sense of participation and collaborative plot development rarely achieved in today's cinema.
Ang Lee has put together a great film which could have wide appeal. It is disturbing to me that this film had such a limited early release in the United States. Have we really become so socially retrograde that the homo-phobia of a loud-mouthed minority of reactionary fanatics is easier for us to take than an unconventional love story? I hope not.