BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN - A Tale of Two Lovers
Ang Lee has given us some great films over the years: films such as Eat Drink Man Woman, Sense and Sensibility, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and my personal favourite of his, The Ice Storm. This is a director who clearly knows how to tell a story and his latest effort, Brokeback Mountain, is further proof of his directing prowess as he weaves an emotional powerhouse of a tale about two lovers kept apart by societal forces.
The critical attention this film is getting may be a little over the top, but still well deserved as Brokeback Mountain is clearly one of the best films of 2005. This is mainly because Lee handles the controversial subject matter with great intelligence and care, employing a minimalist approach to the film’s content, allowing the power of the story to speak for itself – with no attempt on his part to embellish or accentuate its dramatic impact with Hollywood tricks and clichés. In essence, Lee simply lets the story unfold, allowing the honesty of the actors’ performances and the proficiency of the writing to be the main vehicles in which the inherent power of the story is communicated to the audience.
Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal also deserve accolades for their superb performances as they rely mainly on subtext to communicate the complicated feelings of their respective characters’, adding a heightened sense of realism to the story’s development. Ledger in particular is a revelation as he becomes the embodiment of the film’s devastating emotional power.
And gay or straight, this is a story for everyone, because all can relate to the experience of frustrated love. Moreover, to the filmmakers’ credit, they avoid the political pitfalls that such a narrative lends itself to, choosing rather to focus more on the story’s universal theme of love denied – a theme that really adds to the film’s dramatic impact and elevates the material from a political arena to a philosophical and spiritual one. The bottom line: Brokeback Mountain is nothing less than a heart wrenching love story that leaves the audience with the haunting impression of how truly tragic it is when soul mates are unjustly kept apart – tragic not only for the lovers themselves, but for all of us.
The critical attention this film is getting may be a little over the top, but still well deserved as Brokeback Mountain is clearly one of the best films of 2005. This is mainly because Lee handles the controversial subject matter with great intelligence and care, employing a minimalist approach to the film’s content, allowing the power of the story to speak for itself – with no attempt on his part to embellish or accentuate its dramatic impact with Hollywood tricks and clichés. In essence, Lee simply lets the story unfold, allowing the honesty of the actors’ performances and the proficiency of the writing to be the main vehicles in which the inherent power of the story is communicated to the audience.
Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal also deserve accolades for their superb performances as they rely mainly on subtext to communicate the complicated feelings of their respective characters’, adding a heightened sense of realism to the story’s development. Ledger in particular is a revelation as he becomes the embodiment of the film’s devastating emotional power.
And gay or straight, this is a story for everyone, because all can relate to the experience of frustrated love. Moreover, to the filmmakers’ credit, they avoid the political pitfalls that such a narrative lends itself to, choosing rather to focus more on the story’s universal theme of love denied – a theme that really adds to the film’s dramatic impact and elevates the material from a political arena to a philosophical and spiritual one. The bottom line: Brokeback Mountain is nothing less than a heart wrenching love story that leaves the audience with the haunting impression of how truly tragic it is when soul mates are unjustly kept apart – tragic not only for the lovers themselves, but for all of us.
On the Rickter-Scale Brokeback Moutain rates an 8.0 out of 10.
THE RICKTER-SCALE:
10 (A+) – extraordinary, a masterpiece
9.5/9.0 (A) – exceptional, a milestone
8.5/8.0 (A-) – excellent, a classic
7.5/7.0 (B+) – very good, a near classic
6.5/6.0 (B) – good
5.5/5.0 (B-) – fair
4.5/4.0 (C+) – poor
3.5/3.0 (C) – very poor, a near disaster
2.5/2.0 (C-) – terrible, a total disaster
1.5/1.0 (D+) – torture, a catastrophe
0.5/0.0 (F) – abysmal, the end of film as an artform
10 (A+) – extraordinary, a masterpiece
9.5/9.0 (A) – exceptional, a milestone
8.5/8.0 (A-) – excellent, a classic
7.5/7.0 (B+) – very good, a near classic
6.5/6.0 (B) – good
5.5/5.0 (B-) – fair
4.5/4.0 (C+) – poor
3.5/3.0 (C) – very poor, a near disaster
2.5/2.0 (C-) – terrible, a total disaster
1.5/1.0 (D+) – torture, a catastrophe
0.5/0.0 (F) – abysmal, the end of film as an artform
posted by Rix Flix at 9:46 PM
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