April 8, 2006

Review Corner

Finally! The ThreeSources review of "Brokeback Mountain!"

I watched it last night and have to say that it's a good movie, but I would not call it a great movie. The pacing is very slow. Good cinematography and music compensate to a point, but I wanted to fast forward the storyline. The characters are compelling, and I found myself interested in what would happen.

I should say that I am an Annie Proulx fan, but I think this script is a lot more Larry McMurtry's. He adapted a short story into a long movie and Ms. Proulx's touches are scarce.

The gay scenes are tolerable for a reasonably enlightened, 21st Century guy. It's not homo-erotic like some of Ann Rice's work (she has made me nervous on a few occasions). If you can handle some big, hairy cowboys kissing for a few minutes, you'll be fine. (Just relax and think of England!)

Is that a recommendation? No. The film is pretty pretentious, as we are asked to pity these poor guys who were in Wyoming (Bush 69% - Kerry 29%) and Texas (Bush 61-38%) during the 60's and 70's -- not all enlightened like West Hollywood today. The pacing is very slow. If you're not crying for the beauty of the love story -- and I kinda doubt anyone around here will be -- you'll be waiting for it to end.

But it has made me pretty nervous around cowboys...Two and a half stars.

Posted by jk at April 8, 2006 10:37 AM

Shepherds -- they were shepherds. But that aside, it was a good film, though I chafed every time I heard anyone suggest homophobia as a reason that it lost the best picture to Crash. In my opinion at least, Crash was just much better.

Posted by: howard at April 9, 2006 12:56 AM

Wow. A quick search shows that I gave "Crash" zero stars (I am tough, but unfair...) Crash deserves better than that but I found its politics infuriating.

I have heard this cowboy vs. shepherds argument before. Watching the film, I suggest that it is fair to call them cowboys. They met at a sheep-watching gig, yes, but one rides rodeo, the other does whatever ranching work comes around, I feel comfortable calling these cats cowboys.

I will agree that Brokeback Mountain was not robbed because of homophobia (it is so rampant in the film industry!) I think it lost on its own.

Posted by: jk at April 9, 2006 10:55 AM

I find that it's much easier to enjoy movies if I don't bring my politics into the theater. There'd be just too much to annoy me if I did...

Posted by: howard at April 10, 2006 1:38 AM

You are absolutely right, Howard, and I used to be a lot better at checking my beliefs at the door. I don't know how much Hollywood has gotten worse and how much I have but I am finding it more difficult.

I didn't review "Chicken Little." I love animation and the animation was killer but the moral of the story is that the world should be more like an episode of "Oprah." If dads would not be so violent and little boys would learn to express their feelings...Okay, I'll stop.

Posted by: jk at April 10, 2006 10:35 AM

These are serious questions. I am really interested on input in this matter.

Why bother to go see movies that require checking one's values at the door? Worse, why support Hollywood's messed up values with your hard-earned dollars? Finally, how can you, "enjoy," something that is in disagreement with your values?

Posted by: dagny at April 11, 2006 3:09 PM

Agree wholeheartedly, Dagny. But as a practical matter, you are going to be starved for entertainment if you wait for them to remake J*O*E. National Review did a good cover story a few years back on the 100 best conservative movies of all time (100! can you name ten?)

Besides Hollywood bias, there is an intrinsic bias to art. I love the work of John Steinbeck but it's all lies. Frank Capra's "It's a Wonderful life" is an excellent film. I watch it every year, but part of me yells "Go travel and build bridges You'll do the world a lot more good!"

I was proud of myself that I could name five conservative novels without repeating authors. Art is the domain of our opponents. We have Wayne Newton and "Bush Was Right." They have, um, about everything else.

Posted by: jk at April 11, 2006 4:21 PM | What do you think? [6]