Brokeback Mountain

I watched the movie last night on DVD, It was a beautifully made movie, and the story is so moving that the characters, landscapes and songs are lingering in my mind throughout the whole day today. To be honest, I didn’t think I would be so intrigued and touched by a story of the relationship between two men. However, love is the force of nature, as the movie says, and admittedly a lot of us have applied the prejudiced view on a gay relationship. The truth, great love is not a privilege limited to straight couples. And the movie goes beyond this message, it shows how society could impose enormous pressure on people that they don’t dare to pursue the love of their life, which is sad and a shame indeed. Love, is the most important thing to keep us alive, but sometimes reality is cruel and only through the continuous fight against old norms we could evolve into a more open, liberal, inviting society where people could have understanding and tolerance on the diversities, whether it be a choice of sex partner, religion or political views.

I am never a big fan of country/folk music, and never really into the cowboys’ life. But this movie, with most of scenes shot in the farm and mountainous area, has a striking appeal, and along with its soundtrack in the background, creating a world that might be wild and rough, but has its natural, gripping beauty at the same time. And the love between two cowboys, under the blue sky, in front of the brokeback mountain, is so passionate, powerful and sometimes as damaging as the nature itself. And the complexity of life and the journey of two then young men discovering themselves and the love of their lives, are all presented in a subtle, mature and convincing way. Ang Lee, along with the screenwriters, had done a remarkable job in interpreting the original story, if not enriching and expanding it to a level that suits better for the big screen.

Though on the contrary to what most people assumed, this movie was not shot in rural Wyoming, instead it was mostly shot in Alberta, Canada due to the fact Wyoming doesn’t have the infrastructure to support the movie making. It is a bit pity, cause personally I would really like to see how this western state looks like, the part of the country that I have never set my foot on.

This is probably the best movie I saw in the past two years, I guess you can't call it a master piece, but it is certainly enchanting and leave something for all of us to ponder on rather than a fake "happy ending" movie.