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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 1:15 am 
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HideousLump Wrote:
harry Wrote:
...New York Critics, London Film Critics, Venice Film Festival, Boston Film Critics, Chigago Film Critics, Los Angeles Film Critics, National Board of Review, Critics Choice, San Francisco Film Critics, Golden Globes, Directors Guild of America. Best actor by Screen Actors Guild. Best adapted screenplay by Writers Guild of America.

Gay. Gay. Omosessuale. Gay. Gay. Gay. Gay. Gay. Gay. Gay. Gay. Straight. Bi-Curious.

Or as Denzel Washington advised Will Smith re: Six Degrees of Separation, "Don't be kissing no man."


Lemme see... that was SAG you're saying is straight? Are you high?

In and of itself, the fact that there are critics who like it is no big deal... but a film that is reviewed well by a wide range of critics (serious and popular) would make me interested, no matter what the subject matter.

And if you saw Gene Shalitt's review, wherein he was all fluttery and offended, and was certainly sure America didn't want to see THIS kind of movie.... that's worth going by itself.

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 Post subject: Re: Brokeback Mountain Being Released Nationwide Today.
PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 1:19 am 
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OPA! Wrote:
Now all you hicks and rednecks can watch it.


Actually this has been on in Texas for quite a while.

I saw it in Austin. Overrated film.


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 1:33 am 
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I went over to rottentomatoes to see if there were any dissenting reviews, and actually found one that nailed my sentiments---this guy is spot on:

Maybe it’s just a reaction to all the hype, but I find myself curiously underwhelmed by “Brokeback Mountain.” What was supposed to be a Love Story For the Ages as presented by master director Ang Lee turned out instead to be a sluggish, unconvincing mess. Its forced drama, rickety character development, and lethargic pacing make it a chore to watch, while several plot turns, which border on the melodramatic, brought back memories of a certain beloved-by-many-yet-unwatchable-by-me Cary Grant feature; yes, my friends, “Brokeback Mountain” is, at its very core, nothing more than this generation’s “An Affair To Remember.”

That feature (which gets more heat from my direction than the movie it remade, 1939’s “Love Story,” simply because the later film is far more well known and far more unwatchable) dragged its characters through the most ridiculous of situations, all in order to keep them apart for dramatic purposes (can’t have unrequited love if they’re easily together and, well, requiting everything). “Brokeback” does the same thing - albeit more convincingly, considering the two leads are gay men who first meet in Wyoming in the early 1960s, not exactly the best time and place for gay men to be. But as the story rolls on (ever so slowly, making the 144-minute running time feel twice as long), progressing us through the decades, we discover that it is not the era nor the locale that’s keeping them apart, but their own decisions. We’re told at first that they hide their relationship to avoid violence from neighbors, yet by the closing credits, we’re certain that it’s more a matter of one character refusing himself his own joy, unable to show emotion toward anyone, not just the man he loves.

In another film, this might work wonders, an examination of why a man would deny his own heart. But here, everything’s so unconvincing. We never quite believe that Ennis (Heath Ledger) and Jack (Jake Gyllenhaal) actually have the feelings for one another that the movie keeps telling us they have. I blame this not on the performances - although the casting is a major problem (more on that in a bit) - but on the story itself. The screenplay, by Larry McMurtry and frequent McMurtry collaborator Diana Ossana (and adapting the short story by Annie Proulx), never lets us see the relationship develop to the point of true romance. It’s more physical. All the times over the years that Ennis sneaks out to be with Jack, the feeling is that of a booty call. Sure, they like hanging out, fishing, camping, etc., but their encounters come across entirely of “Hey! I’ve finally found a gay man in 1963 Wyoming! Just so I won’t have to go through the pain of trying to find someone else, I suppose you’ll do!” Their longings for each other seem less of the heart and more of the genitals. And it’s hard to make a Love Story For the Ages about a couple of fuck buddies.

And when you’re not that interested in the heart of the story, it’s easier to spot its problems. Consider the simplistic nature of the screenplay. The plot, which covers approximately two decades of these men’s lives, has both men getting married in attempts to “normalize” their lives by hiding their homosexuality. The story paints in too-broad strokes. Ennis winds up married to a frumpy housewife (literally colorless - the costumer dresses her in drab browns and greys to punctuate the point), and in several scenes, we see Ennis overwhelmed with two screaming infants. Jack, meanwhile, marries the rich daughter of a farm equipment magnate, a soulless relationship on the other end of the spectrum. So one becomes super poor, the other super rich. It’s a strained plot point that’s grasping at meaningfulness, but keeps falling short. To make up for the gaps, the movie continues to poke us in the ribs, shouting, “Get it?! They’re unhappy!! Get it now??!!”

Playing the roles of the wives are Michelle Williams and Anne Hathaway. Both characters are driven into the background - Hathaway especially, as the only character development we get from her is her ever-changing wig, which exists to show the passage of time. Don’t know what kind of woman Jack wound up marrying, but I do know she liked the beehive as a hair statement. Williams is given more to do (she’s the frumpy one who discovers Ennis’ secret and must live with it), and to her credit, she pulls off a wonderful performance despite the lack of decent material with which to work. But despite the fine acting, her character remains a one-noter, a cheap outline of repressed emotion.

You may have noticed that all four of these stars are quite young - the oldest is Ledger, at 26. Which is fine when we first meet their characters, but at things progress, and the story keeps jumping ahead in the years, we get stuck watching the indie film equivalent of a high school play: slap on a fake moustache, spray a little fake grey on the temples, and presto! Jake Gyllenhaal is now all old and stuff! Hathaway, with her single-digit character, is the worst here, perpetually looking 23, no matter how high her wigs dare to go. (Worse, the timeline reveals the film ends when the characters are in their late thirties, yet the cheap makeup is done to suggest they’re in their fifties.)

That’s a major misstep, and a major distraction. How can we become involved in this romance when we’re too busy laughing at Gyllenhaal’s moustache?

It’s all too much. There’s a lot to want to like about this movie - Lee’s visuals (especially shots of the mammoth Wyoming frontier) are quite stunning; fine performances from the supporting players, such as Randy Quaid and Linda Cardellini, make the story a bit more bearable; Gustavo Santaolalla’s musical score is achingly beautiful - but there’s a lot more to dislike. It’s a hackneyed, underdeveloped melodrama disguised as serious art house fare. I can’t even commend it on the daringness of its subject matter; yes, a gay romance is risky for mainstream America, but Lee mostly plays it all too safely (right down to the double standard of nudity, which here offers female breasts aplenty, but nary a male member in sight).

The purpose of a romance is to get the audience to care about its characters. “Brokeback Mountain” fails at this, content with having one-dimensional people inhabit a soap opera world. It might look pretty, but that’s all surface stuff. Lee’s film is too empty, too uninvolving, and just plain too dull.


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 3:09 am 
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harry Wrote:
HideousLump Wrote:
harry Wrote:
...New York Critics, London Film Critics, Venice Film Festival, Boston Film Critics, Chigago Film Critics, Los Angeles Film Critics, National Board of Review, Critics Choice, San Francisco Film Critics, Golden Globes, Directors Guild of America. Best actor by Screen Actors Guild. Best adapted screenplay by Writers Guild of America.

Gay. Gay. Omosessuale. Gay. Gay. Gay. Gay. Gay. Gay. Gay. Gay. Straight. Bi-Curious.


Lemme see... that was SAG you're saying is straight? Are you high?

A little SAG fag gag.


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 8:52 am 
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Film critics are almost certainly liberal, the Hollywood Machine (i.e. awards shows and what not) is the meaning of liberal. This film was made for and is used to promote an agenda. Same as Million Dollar Baby was used for assisted death, or death by CHOICE (hmm, maybe there's a reference that goes even beyond assisted suicide). And what about American Beauty with it's undertones of acceptance and ignorance, that winning awards couldn't have been political at all. And then there's that musical everyone loved... yeah musicals, those aren't gay.

It's all bullshit to me. I hope it does win awards, it should take home every freakin Oscar just to show how political Hollywood continues to be.

On a side note, name five serious conservative movies released this year... Hell name two.

We live in a vastly conservative country. The party in power has used conservatism in a very similar manner as Hitler (who needs other parties?) and yet where is this effect in the film industry? What movies do you watch if you live in a blue state? The lack of an option couldn't be politcal at all could it?


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 10:32 am 
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coma Wrote:
We live in a vastly conservative country. The party in power has used conservatism in a very similar manner as Hitler (who needs other parties?) and yet where is this effect in the film industry? What movies do you watch if you live in a blue state? The lack of an option couldn't be politcal at all could it?



see. I was totally on board with you, but why'd you have to go and say that?


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 12:15 pm 
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Diggity Dawg Wrote:
Count me in the "no interest" camp. Nothing to do with the dude-on-dude action...it just doesn't seem that interesting.

It's basically "Same Time, Next Year" on the range with a twist o' the gay, right? Eh.


BUT THE GAY SCARES FOLKS IN THE SOUTH. AND RED STATES. Its all edgy and offensive to our sensibilities. Cos you know, they block Will & Grace and Ellen and Queer Eye in all states but NY, MA, and CA...none of us round these parts even knew dudes liked to fuh each other before this movie came out.

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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 12:15 pm 
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Senator LooGAR, TX Monger Wrote:
...none of us round these parts even knew dudes liked to fuh each other before this movie came out.


lol

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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 1:33 pm 
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The Dreaded Marco Wrote:
I went over to rottentomatoes to see if there were any dissenting reviews, and actually found one that nailed my sentiments---this guy is spot on:

Maybe it’s just a reaction to all the hype, but I find myself curiously underwhelmed by “Brokeback Mountain.”...

.


My point is my posts in this thread is to remark on what seems a "reactionary" response to the movie. Not that is the best movie ever, or even this year. This is actually a very thoughtful review. Lot's of accuracte and interesting observations. Rottentomatoes is always where I go... after I see a movie... thanks.

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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 2:03 pm 
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[img][650:407]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/be/2004_US_elections_purple_counties.png[/img]


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 2:19 pm 
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Hegel-oh's Wrote:

see. I was totally on board with you, but why'd you have to go and say that?


I'm not pro democrat or republican. Both sides smell of rot to me. Cop out issues like gay marriage and abortion are crippling our society and are being used as the basis for what side you are on. While serious issues like foregin policy, medicare, dissaster relief and education are treated like unsolvable problems with no solutions by both sides. It pisses me off. Hollywood in all it's liberal nightmare reality has the opportunity to truly address these problems and yet all it does is focus on a) the futility of war b) homosexuality or c) the right to choose. Crapola issues that will figure themselves out with time.

I used to think Replublicans were the way to go because they get stuff done. WTF are they doing right now? Crippled by scandel and lack of support and focusing all their energy to a get pro life shmuck in the courts who doesn't handle himself half as well as Roberts did. But none of that matters cause if the party in power wasn't fearful of the rightful scrutiny it's under from it's own people the guy would have slid in without all this hoopla. And yet what is Hollywood with all it's political freedom doing. "Let's accept homosexuals".

It's taking Republicans to take pot shots at their own people to get these issues of torture and Fema reform and unchecked lobbying addressed. What are the Dems. doing? WTF is going on?


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 2:27 pm 
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coma Wrote:
This film was made for and is used to promote an agenda.


like what?


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 2:29 pm 
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Diggity Dawg Wrote:
Count me in the "no interest" camp. Nothing to do with the dude-on-dude action.


not that there's anything wrong with it.


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 2:42 pm 
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I would watch this if it were directed by John Waters.

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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 2:48 pm 
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ayah,

Should the Notebook be considered for an Academy award for it's tale of love though the ages? No. So what makes Brokeback Mountain so different? Oh yeah that's right... they're dudes.


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 3:00 pm 
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Nakedprey Wrote:
[img][650:407]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/be/2004_US_elections_purple_counties.png[/img]


Yeah, but that doesn't account for population density, and so it's just a bunch of red where there's no one at all in many places.


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 3:06 pm 
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ayah Wrote:
coma Wrote:
This film was made for and is used to promote an agenda.


like what?


Oh c'mon ayah... you know what agenda he's talkng about...

The GAY Agenda!!!

_______________________________________

I know that many of you have heard Pat Robertson, Jerry Fallwell and others speak of the "Homosexual Agenda," but no one has ever seen a copy of it. Well, I have finally obtained a copy directly from the Head Homosexual. It follows below:

6:00 am Gym
8:00 am Breakfast (oatmeal and egg whites)

9:00 am Hair appointment
10:00 am Shopping
12:00 PM Brunch

2:00 PM
1) Assume complete control of the U.S. Federal, State and Local Governments as well as all other national governments,
2) Recruit all straight youngsters to our debauched lifestyle,
3) Destroy all healthy heterosexual marriages,
4) Replace all school counselors in grades K-12 with agents of Colombian and Jamaican drug cartels,
5) Establish planetary chain of homo breeding gulags where over-medicated imprisoned straight women are turned into artificially impregnated baby factories to produce prepubescent love slaves for our devotedly pederastic gay leadership,
6) bulldoze all houses of worship, and
7) Secure total control of the INTERNET and all mass media for the exclusive use of child pornographers.

2:30 PM Get forty winks of beauty rest to prevent facial wrinkles from stress of world conquest
4:00 PM Cocktails
6:00 PM Light Dinner (soup, salad, with Chardonnay)
8:00 PM Theater
11:00 PM Bed (du jour)"

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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 3:12 pm 
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abortion is a cop out issue?

y'know, coma, i was going to reply to this and a few of your other comments but you are so off base i don't even know where to begin. i'm going to assume you are very young and leave it at that.

hey polly, that schedule needs more of a skin regime.


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 3:17 pm 
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coma Wrote:
This film was made for and is used to promote an agenda.

Hollywood's "agenda" is to make money. There'd be a film out right now about the benefits of eating babies if they thought it'd make money. So if you come up with a good story about medicare or the reform of FEMA they'll make it - oh, what's that? Medicare and FEMA reform aren't exactly subjects rife with drama? Well, there you go. Now shu' up.


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 3:24 pm 
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The Dreaded Marco Wrote:
Maybe it’s just a reaction to all the hype, but I find myself curiously underwhelmed by “Brokeback Mountain.” What was supposed to be a Love Story For the Ages as presented by master director Ang Lee turned out instead to be a sluggish, unconvincing mess.

(...)

The screenplay, by Larry McMurtry and frequent McMurtry collaborator Diana Ossana (and adapting the short story by Annie Proulx), never lets us see the relationship develop to the point of true romance.
suggest they’re in their fifties.)


Yeah. I think that review summarizes how I felt about it as well.

I am someone who is of a young, urban background, from a (usually) very gay-positive city (Montreal). I'd say about 60-70% of my closest friends are gay. Whatevs. My point is that I went to the movie to see a movie; the gay thing just isn't an issue for me one way or the other in the context of wanting to see a love story.

That said, I thought it was simply "alright". Like the reviewer I just wasn't that convinced. I understand it's significance I guess in terms of depicting something we don't normally see and maybe generating some understanding about what some people go through... but it would have been more effective at that it had developed the love between them more convincingly, methinks.

Senator LooGAR, TX Monger Wrote:
I agree with Crack in that all the awards and the fact that its supposed to be jarring are MORE ANNOYING than anything.


As to all this talk of it being of it being "supposed to be jarring", etc. that's totally ridiculous. The movie couldn't be less jarring if it tried. I NEARLY FELL ASLEEP!


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 3:26 pm 
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polly, why do you hate the gays?


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 3:31 pm 
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ayah Wrote:
hey polly, that schedule needs more of a skin regime.


You're right. And we should make a version for "gay women and their groupies" (such as myself), which would feature sleeping in, buying large comfortable boots, procuring more cats, shopping for gear and tools, and other fun things. :wink:


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 3:31 pm 
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ayah Wrote:
polly, why do you hate the gays?


it's jealousy, really.


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 3:47 pm 
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ayah Wrote:
abortion is a cop out issue?



No, but it is a distraction, which is what I think he meant.

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Throughout his life, from childhood until death, he was beset by severe swings of mood. His depressions frequently encouraged, and were exacerbated by, his various vices. His character mixed a superficial Enlightenment sensibility for reason and taste with a genuine and somewhat Romantic love of the sublime and a propensity for occasionally puerile whimsy.
harry Wrote:
I understand that you, of all people, know this crisis and, in your own way, are working to address it. You, the madras-pantsed julip-sipping Southern cracker and me, the oldman hippie California fruit cake are brothers in the struggle to save our country.

FT Wrote:
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PostPosted: Sun Jan 15, 2006 12:56 am 
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Senator LooGAR, TX Monger Wrote:
none of us round these parts even knew dudes liked to fuh each other before this movie came out.

It's not that we "like" to fuh each other, we just feel socially obligated. It's like an air kiss at this point.


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