Brokeback Mountain. 5
” [Heath] Ledger’s magnificent performance [in Brokeback Mountain] is an acting miracle. He seems to tear it from his insides. Ledger doesn’t just know how Ennis moves, speaks and listens; he knows how he breathes. To see him inhale the scent of a shirt hanging in Jack’s closet is to take measure of the pain of love lost. As Jack told him once, “That ol’ Brokeback got us good.” That’s the key reason — besides its daring, its bravery, its dead-on relevance to right now — that this classic in the making ranks high on the list of the year’s best movies. It gets you good.” – Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
You know, sometimes you see a movie, and you know that actors have reached that moment in their careers, that pinnacle. Ellen Burstyn in Requiem for a Dream. Bjork in Dancer in the Dark. Meryl Streep in…wait, never mind, that would be most films she’s ever made.
I never expected to feel that way about Heath Ledger. “Oh, cool a gay cowboy story…Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal…uh-huh…Well, we’ll see how it turns out.”
Well, the movie was great, but Heath had his moment. That moment of transcendence into breathing a character, that breakout role, whatever you want to call it. I dare say his performance is worth the price of admission, notwithstanding even the other brilliant performances (Michelle Williams, hello?) and Ang Lee’s beautiful work. And I dare say you’re crazy if you disagree.
Run to the theatres. If you have a short attention span, it might work your nerves in points as far as pacing goes–it is Ang, after all–but it will reward your patience fully.
Heath. Wow.
PS – Proof that it was a gay movie: I walked out the exit into the streets, and I overheard a flamboyant voice saying, “Their outfits were perrrrrfect!” Oy.
i like you.
i do.
tomorrow night maybe we can watch a movie when you get out of work? i’ll pick something good. and we can cuddle. and i can give you a kiss.
of course i’m not going to be crazy and rush/jump into things. but you make me smile. i had fun at trash tonight, even if we couldn’t cuddle.
i’ll talk to you soon.
Hi Scott Anthony, I have been reading this blog since you were in high school, always fascinated. Your transition from the South to New York was apparently seamless. You are really very amazing in you perception of, description of, and approach to the world. I am an old English teacher at a technical college in Wisconsin, and I read student’s work all the time. You wonderfully make your world com alive, good or bad. Thank you, and please keep blogging. Sincerely, Jerry
Brokeback Mountain.
Brokeback Mountain is testing a lot nerves….
I went to see it as an act of political correctness, I walked out remembering the agonies of adolescents. I would fall in love and be unable to tell anyone because it was so terrible (I’m older, but the pain was unforgettable.) I believe the movie has a political impact, but it was amazingly personal for me, and that is a tribute to the cast and the director
Great observations. I agree completely about Ledger. What a performance. What a sad movie! Ennis: what an American classic! My heart broke for everybody.