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Brokeback Mountain (2005)
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Reviews Counted:226
Fresh:195
Rotten:31
Average Rating:8.1/10
Consensus: A beautifully epic Western, Brokeback Mountain's gay love story is embued with heartbreaking universality, helped by the moving performances of Ledger and Gyllenhaal.
Runtime: 2 hrs 15 mins
Genre: Dramas
US Box Office: $82,970,165
Synopsis: From Academy Award-winning filmmaker Ang Lee comes an epic American love story, based on the short story by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Annie Proulx and adapted for the screen by the team of... From Academy Award-winning filmmaker Ang Lee comes an epic American love story, based on the short story by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Annie Proulx and adapted for the screen by the team of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana. Set against the sweeping vistas of Wyoming and Texas, the film tells the story of two young men – a ranch-hand and a rodeo cowboy – who meet in the summer of 1963, and unexpectedly forge a lifelong connection, one whose complications, joys and tragedies provide a testament to the endurance and power of love. Early one morning in Signal, Wyoming, Ennis del Mar (Heath Ledger) and Jack Twist (Jake Gyllenhaal) meet while lining up for employment with local rancher Joe Aguirre (Randy Quaid). The world which Ennis and Jack have been born into is at once changing rapidly and yet scarcely evolving. Both young men seem certain of their set places in the heartland – obtaining steady work, marrying and raising a family – and yet hunger for something beyond what they can articulate. When Aguirre dispatches them to work as sheepherders up on the majestic Brokeback Mountain, they gravitate towards camaraderie and then a deeper intimacy. At summer's end, the two must come down from Brokeback and part ways. Remaining in Wyoming, Ennis weds his sweetheart Alma (Michelle Williams), with whom he will have two daughters as he ekes out a living. Jack, in Texas, catches the eye of a rodeo queen Lureen Newsome (Anne Hathaway). Their courtship and marriage result in a son, as well as jobs in her father's business. Four years pass. One day, Alma brings Ennis a postcard from Jack, who is en route to visit Wyoming. Ennis waits expectantly for his friend, and when Jack at last arrives, in just one moment it is clear that the passage of time has only strengthened the men's attachment. In the years that follow, Ennis and Jack struggle to keep their secret bond alive. They meet up several times annually. Even when they are apart, they face the eternal questions of fidelity, commitment and trust. Ultimately, the one constant in their lives is a force of nature – love. -- © Focus Features [More]
Starring: Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Williams, Anne Hathaway
Starring: Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Williams, Anne Hathaway, Randy Quaid, Linda Cardellini, Anna Faris, Valerie Planche
Director: Ang Lee
Director: Ang Lee
Screenwriter: Larry McMurtry, Diana Ossana
Producer: Diana Ossana, James Schamus
Composer: Gustavo Santaolalla
Studio: Focus Features
Reviews for Brokeback Mountain
Ang Lee's beautiful epic is both a classic American western and a sweeping old fashioned romance that will tug the heartstrings of all but the coldest of people
Lee and his collaborators have tapped into Proulx's story and gathered it up without missing a single sad, delicate nuance.
A haunting and complex story that explores the strength and fragility of love, Ang Lee's visually magnificent film is as affecting as it is beautiful.
A jaundiced portrait of maleness in crisis… extending not only to… the central characters, but also to the validity of manhood as exemplified by every other male character in the film.
Beautifully photographed and well acted, but also slow moving and episodic
A story of forbidden love on the range, Brokeback Mountain is acted, directed, written and photographed with heart-pounding beauty.
Heath Ledger, in particular, I think really has to get an Oscar nomination.
The first quarter of Brokeback Mountain plays like a silent movie version of Waiting of Godot, but starring two Marlboro Men instead of Vladimir and Estragon . . .
If the filmmakers weren’t trying so hard to deny the characters' failings, Brokeback Mountain might have lived up to its immense reputation.
I love gay people and I love a lot of gay movies - just not this one.
Because 'Brokeback Mountain' has made such a profound impact on so many viewers, I almost feel guilty that I can't rave about it.
Lush scenery encircles two laconic characters in this static movie.
The movie is too tame and too clumsy to be worth much outside its "groundbreaking" status.
Essentially, [this] is the same as most stories of lust and infidelity -- two people who 'can't control' their desires end up hurting others, lying, and denying responsibility for their actions.
If Brokeback Mountain is not about 'gay cowboys', perhaps it should be seen as a film about hate crimes and bullying against gays.
Latest News for Brokeback Mountain
November 13, 2009:
James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
James Schamus might be a workaholic. If it's not enough that he's the head of Focus Features -- the independent imprint of Universal -- he's also an established producer and... More...
November 12, 2009:
Five Favourite Films with Ang Lee
The rule that no two Ang Lee movies are ever the same is confidently kept intact with the release of his latest, Taking Woodstock, a comedy about the true story behind the... More...
January 29, 2008:
No Country for Old Men Takes Top Honors at SAG Awards
Blessed with a waiver by its striking brethren in the Writers Guild, the Screen Actors Guild was able to turn Sunday's SAG Awards ceremony into one of the only "real" awards... More...
January 22, 2008:
Heath Ledger: 1979-2008
Heath Ledger, star of films including Brokeback Mountain, 10 Things I Hate About You, and the forthcoming The Dark Knight, was found dead this afternoon. He was 28. More...
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