Posted on 12/28/2005 8:48:09 AM PST by presidio9
In case you've been hunkered down on Mount Kenya, "Brokeback Mountain" recently opened. No hurricanes destroyed Orlando. No meteorites were reported in Los Angeles.
In fact, the film quietly attracted record-breaking crowds in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. And so it seems that Ang Lee's film about two cowboys in love is — at minimum — surviving. The reason for this is hard to figure out.
Could it be that all three opening cities have hefty gay populations? Another option is that right-wing groups, such as Focus on the Family, are all but keeping silent, in hopes that the film just goes away. Or it might have to do with Hollywood hunks Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal and their huge female fan bases.
Whatever the reason, Exhibitor Relations Co. reports that over the first weekend, Dec. 10-11, the film brought in the highest per-screen average for any film release in 2005.
And if that's not enough, "Brokeback Mountain" has already landed awards from the Los Angeles Film Critics Associations and the New York Film Critics Circle.
Even some real-life cowboys applaud the flick. "I think it's something that's now just being more understood," seven-time world-champion cowboy Ty Murray, who is straight, recently told ABC's Good Morning America. "Hopefully, this movie helps people further understand it."
But as a gay man from a small town like the one in "Brokeback Mountain," I find that the beauty of this film lies in its navigating away from stereotypes to convey the power and randomness of love. A welcomed change, I'm sure, for many— especially gay Americans.
Two years ago, I published a column, "Queer TV: Advancing Tolerance or Fostering Stereotypes?" In it, I questioned whether such shows as "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" and "Queer as Folk" were anything more than ratings ploys. And I wondered what viewers, once they found themselves uninterested, might come away with.
Would these programs help in showing the normality of being gay? Or would many viewers come away thinking that we were indeed "different"?
Hollywood has featured gay characters since the 1930s, usually as the effeminate best friend of the leading man. Their orientation was understood, though not discussed. This continued through the '50s, when gay characters were portrayed as emotionally troubled and often suicidal.
By the '70s, both cinema and television started to discuss real-life gay issues.
And during the '80s and '90s, gay characters and gay-themed programming moved to the forefront. Still, the way in which they were depicted — in most cases — cultivated dated stereotypes.
Now, through movies such as "Brokeback Mountain," Hollywood is shedding light on the fact that not all gay men are fashion gurus, hairdressers, interior designers, and superior in the arts, but that some might — God forbid — be cowboys, herding sheep in Wyoming. And, more important, capable of love-based relationships.
Not all of us gay folk are comfortable with the flamboyance of gay-pride parades. And many would rather sip a Killian's in an Irish pub than dance to techno in a noisy gay bar. "Gay" has nothing to do with lifestyle. And rather than coming out of the closet to make a declaration of individuality or identity, most of us "come out" so that we can share the gift of love openly with another individual.
So when the numbers are tallied and the awards dispersed, my hope is that "Brokeback Mountain" is seen not only as a monumental moment in cinema history but also as a daring and original attempt to prove that love is not bound by interpretation or stereotype.
She was on either Letterman or Leno together as the two guests for the evening and they got into politics and Patrician said she was Republican and Hillary Swank said ya me too and that was about it except for I think it was Jay almost had a heart attach. It was before she won the oscar though. I can't remember exactly because I am sure I was drooling or something.
You're right. Sad that we've become so jaded and bored that we now watch that which would've turned our stomachs, had it ever aired back when we were children.
If that makes me an old prude, fine. In the good old days, they'd have called me a lady.
That part of Sin City was the only part of the movie I really liked.
Speaking of Kirsten Dunst, I saw her in an interview the other day. Is it really just the red hair that makes her look hot in Spiderman?
About BBM, the director is Ang Lee, the same guy who did "HULK", which also tanked at the box office. I don't care who is in the movie, I will avoid all movies he directs.
I could be wrong, but I think that it will be important later, and the next generation will be more moral (for lack of a better word...)
Look at the 'free love' period in the late 60s and early 70s. Contrast that with the late 80s and early 90s. I dunno who was having the free love during that time frame, but it wasn't me or any of my friends. If nothing else, we were all scared to death of the 70s legacy...Herpes, AIDS, etc etc etc.
Contrast that again with the hook-up mentality of today. People - girls and boys, both, will eventually get tired of either being or having disposable sex partners. Add this to the fact that STDs (including AIDS, and believe-it-or-not, Syphillis) are making a comeback, and I think that the next generation is primed for a little more purity.
At least, that's what I think.
Perhaps a hasty cover-up by her publicist explains why she got involved in the "rock the vote" campaign. And how she managed to win the Oscar without politically approved views.
I believe she accepted the role because she was fired from Beverly Hills 90210 and was in need of cash. Understandably not a good reason but that is the reason that she gave. The oscar just was a result of the movie. She may have had the persecution part in her mind, but I think she was just hungry...LOL.
Maybe he's been brainwashed by Jewel and her groupies. Anyway, our teen kids think the premise of this movie is rediculous, and neither they or any of their friends will spend money to see it.
Oh and I am not saying she is perfect. She obviously picks roles that maybe she should not pick. I just know that she is not a Jane Fonda type, but she might not be a as much of a Patricia Heaton type either unfortunately.
Could be.
You're right about the notion of sheepherders being "macho." I mean, there are dogs that can do it.
I never really understood beating up gay guys. For the straight man, they take themselves and another guy out of the cometition to get women. If guys want to beat someone, they should go after the lesbians. They take themselves and another women out of availability. /just kidding
Is this that movie about gay shepherds who eat pudding and then have sex when there is nothing left to do?
Have you seen the recent commercials? They focus on scenes with the women, and refer to it as a great American love story. I hope the people tricked into seeing it wage a financial backlash against hollywood.
If it were real love they wouldn't have hid it like cowards and subsequently ruined two families in the process.
They look like fags to me. Not sure if this film will help their careers.
"Hey Bubba, you shore got a hairy butt"
"You lak that"
"I shore do plenty. It really gits ma motor runnin"
"Well, let's say me and you jump up in the truck bed and werk out tha kinks, yewwantu?"
"You got any pertection?"
"Sho nuff. I got me a bedliner"
"Hell yeah, git-r-dun".
True ... just ask Congresscritter Barney Frank Fag
Hey, didn't you read the article? That's not perversion, that's "flamboyance"!
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