How Brokeback Affected Me--continued

[B.W.]

^^ Tough read.  Many straight men, fathers, brothers, just don't know how to relate and have no frame of real reference to fall back on in such circumstances.  The tie between the young horse and the young man then was in-depth.  I will never really understand how a father, mother, brother or sister could truly hate and disown a son, daughter, brother or sister for being homosexual when it has nothing to do with them. V.

Bigots are going to hate, that's what they do. You don't even have to be LGBTQIA+ to experience hate from or to be disowned by your family and friends. Dating or marrying someone of a different race, practicing a religion that other people don't like, leaving your childhood religion, being an immigrant who doesn't speak the native language of your new homeland etc. People will always find an excuse to be bigoted, no matter who the prejudice is being directed towards. Some people always look for an excuse to hate.

[gattaca]

^^^ Yeap.  Dead to rights. V.

[mixmovart]

Very interesting insights.

I generally like the idea of the film: it is about people in general, about love in general, about lost dreams and hopes. I like that this story can be interpreted widely - outside of time, outside of sexual preferences. And also about real love, and not about these pink snot (as in most love novels), and there is nothing fairy-tale here - real life without embellishment. But we are also talking about a feeling that probably everyone would like to experience. To love like that and to be loved in return

[CellarDweller115]

I Remember When I Saw Brokeback Mountain

December 21st, 2023 - Written By Anupam


I remember the first time I saw a queer film. It was 2006. Brokeback Mountain. Fresh off its Oscar hype and with the support of the liberal censors in the first UPA regime, the film had a limited run in India. In Kolkata, where I was then college-hunting, the film ran for two weeks, mostly relegated to off-peak time slots such as weekday mornings to avoid turning off family audiences and lure in film lovers and fags. I was both.

I remember how the stars aligned. New to the city and with no friends, I was destined to experience this alone. A solo adventure. My first time in a multiplex. A lot of firsts for me. The film was in its second week. The one remaining hall where it played was far from home, on the city’s eastern edges in a swanky new mall. Perfect for anonymity and affordable tickets at multiplex rates. After a fairly long trek, which involved three changes in transport – first by bus, then an auto, and finally, a rickshaw, I reached the hallowed mall. Confident but scared. Excited and wary.

I remember getting off, slightly hesitatingly, the auto. I was early. Now, that was awkward. So, I paced up and down. Smoked two cigarettes. Drank over-sweet spiced tea in red mud kulhads. I don’t remember buying the ticket, but I do remember a weird, part-smirky, part-incredulous look on the face of the security guard as he looked at my stub, punched a hole in it, and then padded me down.

https://gaysifamily.com/culture/i-remember-when-i-saw-brokeback-mountain/

[CellarDweller115]

How 'Brokeback Mountain' helped me come out to my father

My love affair with queer cinema began in 2005, when my father took me to our local independent cinema for a preview screening of Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain. I was 14 and only just beginning to consider — albeit timidly  — my emerging sexuality from the safety of my bedroom. Up until that evening, my exposure to gay sex had been strictly limited to a few late-night Google searches, resulting in more images of horse whips and leather ass-chaps than men kissing under moonlight.

The photos I found online were abrasive and forthright, a stark contrast to my apologetic nature and certainly more graphic than the heterosexual sex-ed illustrations I’d seen at school. This was perhaps one of the reasons I’d been left so enamoured by the trailer for Brokeback Mountain, with its meandering shots of rolling mountainside, gentle banjo soundtrack, and two men kissing in a way that seemed ‘normal’ and loving.

The film’s trailer carved out a small window to a world I’d heard of, but not yet experienced. It validated the ‘funny tummy’ feeling I occasionally grappled with around other boys, and reassured me of the joys salvageable from being labeled ‘different’.


https://www.sbs.com.au/voices/article/how-brokeback-mountain-helped-me-come-out-to-my-father/c58q78b6d

[CellarDweller115]

The film that makes me cry: Brokeback Mountain

Tola Onanuga


A tale of two men falling in love in 1960s Wyoming, Brokeback Mountain was never going to be your average screen romance; nor did director Ang Lee intend it to be.

Based on the short story by Annie Proulx, the 2006 film adaptation is not afraid to wear its heart on its bloodstained sleeve. Almost every scene packs some kind of emotional punch, largely thanks to the astonishingly raw performances from Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal, who play, respectively, the lead roles of Ennis Del Mar and Jack Twist so memorably.

Spanning a 20-year period, the story pays careful attention to the trail of deceived wives, bewildered parents and confused kids the pair leave behind as their complex relationship intensifies.

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/apr/02/the-film-that-makes-me-cry-brokeback-mountain

[killersmom]

Great article, Chuck. Thanks for posting it. Brokeback lives forever.

[Vic]

Great article, Chuck. Thanks for posting it. Brokeback lives forever.

Yes, it does. It brought me back here after all these years. Still amazing.

[Vic]

There have been many stories, and films, about doomed gay love. And I've always wondered why BBM was so different to so many people in its profound impact. I've never been quite able to put my finger on it, was it the scenery, the mostly melancholy music, the times, the fact that they were cowboys (an all-American macho male icon), I don't know. Probably all of the above. Still, it has something special that the others didn't and don't have.

[velvetgoldmine]

Hello everyone! My name is Polina. I can't put into words how much this film means to me. Ever since I saw it as a teenager, almost 20 years ago, I keep thinking about it as if it were a real story and Ennis and Jack were real people. Very often the thought of such a strong, all-consuming love keeps me going, but sometimes, like lately, I can't stop crying, replaying the most difficult scenes in my head (the last meeting, Jack's death, Ennis at his parents, the shirt scene, the "King of the Road" scene).  Maybe you have an answer to the question I keep thinking about: did Jack know Ennis loved him? Did he realise the strength of Ennis' feelings without words? Did he always feel as badly as he did in that last scene, or were their moments together at first not so infrequent and the thought of them warmed and sustained Jack (and Ennis) like my thoughts about this film? Can we be sure that their "damned few times together in almost 20 years" have made their life unhappy and full of pain? Maybe their strong feelings transcended time and space and they were still lucky and blessed to have each other?
Maybe someone wants to chat and discuss the film because I feel so bad, I can't get over it and move on, and I don't have anyone to discuss it with properly (although there are friends and acquaintances who love the film, but they're not obsessed with it like I am).
And I also wanted to share a wonderful video I watched yesterday - editor Dylan Tichenor has some very interesting and insightful thoughts about the film and working on it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYxCGhkTzgs