Brokeback Mountain Screenings and Related Events

[gnash]

That's a great story. It's that shared experience that compounds the power of the film.  Knowing someone whom you do not know having the same experience as you is binding
V.

it was definitely an experience. i'd already seen the movie around 10 times or so, so it really was almost more interesting to watch his reactions than to stare at the screen. i wasn't invasive, at least i hope not. he chose to sit in front of me. i was in the middle, he was nearer to the aisle. let's just say that after he left i totally wasn't thinking about the movie anymore. his reaction had left me reeling.

Sigh. I wonder if he reads here 

What a wonderful story. Thanks for sharing it, Jimmy.

i hope he does!

you're welcome, thank you jeannie. 

Jimmy, I don't think I ever heard you talk about that before!
Thanks for sharing that!

glad you enjoyed it lyle... hmm, i'm pretty sure i posted it before -- probably around 10 yrs ago!

[Sason]

What a wonderful story, Jimmy!

Thanks for sharing it, I hadn't heard it before.

And you'r way of telling it is fascinating, makes it very easy to imagine what you experienced.

[B.W.]

thank you for your wonderful brokeback memory, lyle. i saw brokeback at the arclight too, what a great venue. was great to see the costumes on display. who knew we would see them again at the castro, and other places too, like the max factor museum in hollywood.

i also saw BBM at the aero in santa monica (where we sat in the front row, just three feet from heath and jake!) for the march 06 screening and q & a, and at theatres in beverly hills, glendale, burbank, and in northridge.. LOL. i think i watched in "only" 11 times in theaters, dragging friends who hadn't seen it, or who wanted to see it again, or just by myself.. only 11 times or so, because soon after that i received an academy award screener and was able to watch it at home. still, it's so delicious on the big screen, ya know?

however, my favorite experience was when i went to the galleria in sherman oaks and watched it by myself for a matinee. there was just a small crowd for the movie, as it was during the week in the early afternoon.

this was the screening where a loud woman kept loudly exclaiming "oy vey!" and "disgusting!" at any scene she found to be repulsive or not to her liking. so annoying, and others were telling her to shut up, but we all know brokeback was getting insane reactions from audiences all over the place. i couldn't fault her for voicing the deep emotions that the movie stirred in her, as she obviously had her own story to tell.

anyway... right when the movie started, just as the truck was snaking along that twilight darkened road, i saw a lone figure enter the theater. there he was, standing in a slowly disappearing shaft of yellow light from lobby as the theater doors closed. his lanky body was silhouetted as he stood in place for a moment to allow his eyes to adjust to the darkness of the auditorium. then, he took the stairs in twos, easily climbing toward the middle of the room, and he slid into a spot maybe five seats from mine.

as you can imagine, i was captivated. he was young, mid-twenties, and he wore a black hat like jack twist. he had tight jeans, and a rodeo buckle. a big one. shiny -- i shit you not. he wore a button down shirt, too, but i forgot if it was patterned or just blue.

he sat down and took his cover off. short, close cropped hair. i could see his noble profile. his hands were folded, almost reverently, over his ample basket (hey, i notice everything, lol)... he was tall, and he slid down a little in his seat.

i spent parts of the movie bemoaning the rude woman (who finally left, thank god, dragging her husband with her, but not before shouting "this movie is DEEE-SGUSTING!" at the bottom of the stairs) and other parts staring at this cowboy, who sat near enough so i could see his chest rise and fall. he would gasp almost inaudibly at certain scenes. the FNIT. the SNIT. when joe caught them horsing around, he squirmed a bit in his chair. i did too.

he laughed a few times too. we all do. it's why the movie is so damn good, you laugh, you cry, you break a little inside.

then it happened --jack drove up to the riverton apartment and ennis bounded down the stairs. the kiss unfolded. was it the passion of their embrace that brought wetness to this cowboy's eyes, or was it from a pain he had to endure? i saw it, the sparkle of a tear running down his cheek.

the kiss lasted longer than he could endure. he gripped the armrest of his chair. his legs seemed to stiffen. then alma appeared at the door, and the cowboy jerked, and i heard a choked sob, and he suddenly grabbed his hat and bolted out of the room.

he did not leave out of disgust like the woman who left earlier, but, i suspect, because he was married himself, just like jack and ennis. like the glint of reflected light on his cheeks, there a glittery band of gold on his left hand, too.

the rest of the movie was a blur. i was caught up in anticipation, hoping that the cowboy just had to catch a breather and would come back to finish the movie. i wondered if it was his first time seeing brokeback (this was probably two months after it first opened). maybe he got popcorn. maybe his bladder was bursting. i held out hope, but he never came back into the theater.

now i wonder if he was able to sneak away and see it again to the end. i wonder if he watches it on DVD, if he is still married, if he was able to fix it, or if he's just standing it, like so many men in rural america do.

mind you, this was in the valley of los angeles county. but we have cowboys here, too. maybe he rode down from lancaster to see the movie. maybe he was from sylmar, not so far away, where there are farms and horse ranches, who knows. but a real cowboy, in sherman oaks, punctuated by the enraged crazy lady shouting expletives? it was my most memorable screening of BBM, for sure.

To me, what is really disgusting is that rude women's comments, the ushers should have asked her to leave the auditorium.  Did she not know what the film was about before she bought a ticket?

[Lyle (Mooska)]

Wed., March 28th
VERY SHORT NOTICE
but I just found out...

WGA GROUNDBREAKERS
Double Feature! Writers Ron Nyswaner & Diana Ossana In Person!
PHILADELPHIA / BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
Wed, Mar 28, 2018 • 7:30pm
WGA Groundbreakers screening! In PHILADELPHIA, Tom Hanks stars as a man battling the law firm that fired him after he was diagnosed with AIDS. In BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN, Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal play ranch hands who forge a lifelong connection.

Discussion between films with PHILADELPHIA screenwriter Ron Nyswaner and BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN co-screenwriter Diana Ossana.

[B.W.]

Wed., March 28th
VERY SHORT NOTICE
but I just found out...

WGA GROUNDBREAKERS
Double Feature! Writers Ron Nyswaner & Diana Ossana In Person!
PHILADELPHIA / BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
Wed, Mar 28, 2018 • 7:30pm
WGA Groundbreakers screening! In PHILADELPHIA, Tom Hanks stars as a man battling the law firm that fired him after he was diagnosed with AIDS. In BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN, Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal play ranch hands who forge a lifelong connection.

Discussion between films with PHILADELPHIA screenwriter Ron Nyswaner and BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN co-screenwriter Diana Ossana.

I liked "Philadelphia", but I think that "Brokeback Mountain" is better in my opinion.  I do think that "Philadelphia" somewhat portayed the LGBT characters in a stereotypical fashion.

[gattaca]

Don't forget what tomorrow is... 2004... V.

[blackcatto]

Hi!

I'm new here, where can I download the movie? Thanks.

[gattaca]

Welcome to the forum!

^^^ Officially you can stream from any of the major platforms:  Youtube, Amazon, Apple... (IDK about Netflix) usually for a few $.

It sometimes appears on cable/showtime/hbo

For a good mini-summary, view the 10 "Movieclips" from Fandango's official youtube channel-> https://www.youtube.com/c/MOVIECLIPS/search?query=brokeback

Stay safe, stay alive! 



 

[CellarDweller115]

Blackcatto, welcome to the forum, and gattaca, thanks for giving bc that information!