I have to chuckle every time I see an article discussing whether moviegoers outside of major metropolitan areas will have any interest in seeing Brokeback Mountain. Yes, it’s a movie about a couple of cowpokes embarking on a decades-long, clandestine gay love affair, but it’s also sweeping the majority of 2005 critics’ awards, it leads the pack in Golden Globe nominations, and it’s all but assured of an Oscar nomination. Call me crazy, but do you know any film buff who’s leaving the Heath Ledger-Jake Gyllenhaal romance off their must-see list?
Sure enough, today’s Variety reports Brokeback has ”played well so far in unexpected places — like Plano, Texas, where it’s showing on two screens; Phoenix; and Voorhees, Penn., outside of Philadelphia.” What’s more, the story goes on to say that Fandango ”is getting a significant number of emails from fans wondering why the pic isn’t playing in their town,” apparently a rare phenomenon for the online ticket seller.
I don’t know about you, but I find it encouraging when the desire to experience quality filmmaking trumps grade-school-level skittishness about seeing two guys kissing. After all, you don’t necessarily have to have the urge to enlist in the Marines to want to see Jake in Jarhead, or to invest in wholesale face powder before seeing Memoirs of a Geisha. Why should Brokeback be any different?
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wholesale face powder, HAHA
Hmmmmm….I’m not sure why Phoenix is listed in this article with Plano, TX and Vorhess, PA. Phoenix is one of the largest cities in the US and has several theaters that play indie films like Brokeback Mountain.
I can’t wait for this movie to come to Ohio…anywhere in Ohio…I would travel to see this!
I think Variety was mistaken…there is no such thing as Voorhees, Penn. but there is a Voorhees, NJ right outside of Philadelphia! Also, it’s not surprising that it is doing well in this area, being that neither NJ or PA are red states!
I hate the whole red state/blue state mentality. It barely works in electing a president, much less in trying to determine the opinions and moviegoing habits of millions of diverse people. It amuses me when people who congratulate themselves on their own sophistication and openmindedness are quick to stereotype someone based on where they live. That’s just as bigoted and smallminded as the people upon whom they look down. I’m sure there’s someone in rural Mississippi anxiously awaiting this movie, just as there is some urbanite on 5th Avenue or in LA who is repulsed by the idea of two men kissing on the big screen. Sure the movie will do well in NJ or in PA. But that’s more because they are densely populated states and not so much because of the red or blue color on an election map.
Dan: I love your post. Coming from the bluest of blue cities (New York), I have to admit that I have often bought into the Red State/Blue State mentality. But your remarks are dead on and I need to keep that in mind. Thanks for your thoughts.
Many people will stay away from this film because seeing two men kiss on screen would make them feel very uncomfortable. And yet those same people patronize movies that prominently feature gore, violence, and murder. Which would you rather witness in real life: a same-sex kiss or a murder? Which would you rather see in a movie: a same-sex kiss or a murder? What do your answers tell you about yourself?
Chesnut, there’s a difference. When there’s a murder in a movie, the person didn’t really kill anyone. It’s not actually happening. But when 2 men kiss on screen, they’re actually kissing.
I live in the midwest and I get so tired of people assuming that if you don’t live in New York or L.A. then you must not understand culture, politics or art. It’s a love story. Believe it or not, even though I grew up in the midwest I am not a homophobic person. I know, people, it’s hard to grasp.
Hee haw, I think I’ll drive my wagon over to the Thee-ater and see that movie bout them there girly cowboys.
Dan is exactly right. Stop stereotyping by where people live. Diversity is everywhere. In my small town in upstate New York, I know there are many folks excited to see the movie. (Although none of the 10 screens in town are showing it yet! Come on, I’m waiting impatiently!) I also know there are many in my area who would avoid this movie because of their ‘conservative’ values.
Boy, it is wonderful that it has been nominated for awards, but what would be more wonderful is a chance for this small town girl to actually see it!
I guess I’ll have to send an email to Fandango, because “Brokeback” isn’t playing in MY town. It amazes me how people can get so skittish about a film. And two gorgeous guys getting it on? What’s not to like?
Believe me, stereotypes exist about everything and everyone. Are all New Yorkers ruthless, type-A personality Wall Street types who think the world begins at Central Park and ends at Battery Park? Are all New Jerseyites mafia wannabes who mangle the vowels in the English language? Are all Californians amoral hedonists? Are all midwesterns farmers? All southerners Bible thumpers? Are all…Anyway, you get the point. I live on a red block in a purple neighborhood in a very blue city in an increasingly red state. But I want to see Brokeback Mountain, and so do most people I know. Go figure. What does that prove? Well, nothing other than that the world is not a black and white (or red and blue) place and people can’t be summed up by something so superficial and huge as the state that they live in. If you live in NY or LA or Chicago and believe that your little slice of the world is the only place to find likeminded people, then get over yourself. And if you live in a small town or rural area and think that “the gay cowboy movie” is an example of the cultural elite shoving a lifestyle down your throat, then get the heck out of the house a little more often.
Why should I watch a movie recommended by critics who make fun of those whom they are trying to get to watch the movie?
I just said the red state comment because the title of the Variety article that Popwatch refers to is ‘Brokeback’ tries red-state breakout”
If that’s going to be the headline, at least the states should be accurate. Obviously not everyone in a “red state” is conservative while not everyone in a “blue state” is progressive.
I live in a small town in Southwest Viginia and I emailed our local theater chains last week asking when and/if Brokeback would be playing in our area. I was assured we would get it by late January, but they all intended to show it.
My husband won’t go with me ot see it, but my best girlfriend and my teenage daughter want to go with me. I think a person can watch something from a purely artistic viewpoint without condoning or condemning it’s content. And that’s how I intend to approach this movie.
Laura… in both cases the actors are acting! So, would you rather see a simulation of a murder, or a simulation of a romantic gesture. C’mon.
I’m so sick and tired of Hollywood trying to push their gay agenda down normal christian peoples throats. I have no intention of paying money to see this trashy movie.
Dan, you are right on.
I think the whole point is that if it’s a good movie, as this one seems to be, there are going to be people everwhere that want to see it, regardless of where they live. There are also going to be people that don’t want to see it, even if it is the best movie released all year. I think I am going to drive to the big city near me so I can see it this weekend.
I live in the red state that brought you this president. I’ve voted against him four times for governor and president. I’m seeing Brokeback Thursday. By the way, Plano is an affluent suburb of Dallas. And please stop forcing Lou Lou to see All the gay movies!!
I find it interesting that the Christian community is so quick to accuse others of “pushing their agenda” when they spend much of their time doing the same thing. Many people in this country, and throughout the world, would not consider Christianity “normal” for them, and it’s awfully conceited to assume otherwise. Besides, how can you form an opinion on a movie that you have never even seen??
I found this movie to be a beautiful, moving, heartbreaking story about the consequences of wasting your life by hiding from who you truly are. I am so glad that it’s gaining so much recognition, and I hope it goes on to win the many accolades that it deserves.
Lou Lou’s message is the opposite side of this coin. Just as it’s arrogant to assume that only urbane hipsters are sophisticated enough to see a movie like this, so is it equally goofy to accuse an agenda of being forced down your throat by a private corporation. Don’t like the values portrayed in a movie you haven’t seen? Well, there’s a simple solution to that- don’t support it by paying your money to see it. In other words, DON’T GO SEE IT!!!! God help us all (yes, God) if we’re so thin-skinned that we consider it to be having an “agenda” forced down our throats when someone dares to make an artistic statement that expresses opinions different from our own. There are plenty of movies, books, music and other art forms that I disagree with, but I’m secure enough in my own beliefs to not feel that I’m somehow under attack from them.
I present… Brokeback Mountain: The Sitcom!
*SPOILERS*
Imagine if Jack and Ennis had lived happily ever after right from the beginning. I pitch this show as in the vein as Roseanne with Jack taking her place after eating one too many cans of beans. Ennis is the new Dan, Jack’s amusing, but gruff husband. Alma is Jack’s “Sister” Jackie who is always looking for a good man and Lureen is the new Crystal, esp. with that blonde wig mess. Each week, Jack and Ennis deal with living in suburban Illinois trying to make ends meet and raising their three adorable kids from their previous marriages, two girls and a boy! Wackiness ensues and Americans from both red and blue states tune in for 8 delicious seasons before finding out during the last one that it was all a story by Annie Proulx. Oops.
I loved the short story. Almost loved the movie. Just wanted to have some fun with the whole debate.
Lou Lou, you just lost points.
Loved the movie…very touching. I highly recommend seeing it!
Fat boy, I never said that I felt it was wrong or right. But there is a difference in how the audience perceives it because the murder is fake but a kiss is not.
Laura and Loulou, you both need to get out more. “The murder is fake but a kiss is not.” What the heck does that mean, anyway? It’s okay to watch a slasher movie or a movie about a serial killer, because, after all the murders are fake. But two men kissing are really two men kissing, so avert your eyes! Don’t look! Too disturbing! Sorry, but homophobia gets on my nerves. Look, if you don’t want to see a movie with gay subject matter, that’s okay. No-one is forcing you. No-one is coming to your home at 6:00 and telling you, “The next showing of Brokeback Mountain is on at 7 and we’re here to escort you to it.” There’s no gay agenda. If you don’t want to see the movie, DON’T GO!
OK Laura, let’s put things on a level playing field for you. Since we can assume that Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal didn’t REALLY have sex in the film, let me rephrase my question: Which would you rather see in a movie? A murder, or a sex scene between two people of the same sex? And remember Laura, we KNOW that no one was really murdered, and no one really had sex. NOW what is your answer? And what does your answer tell you about yourself?
You know, you people keep saying that I’m against watching it. When did I ever say that? I never did – I merely said that there is a difference in the way an audience processes things like that. I’m just talking basic principles of acting and audiences – we talked about it in the acting classes in my college.
I’m not going to go see the movie, because I don’t want to. However, I don’t watch slasher movies or movies where people get murdered on-screen either – you assume that I do. And I’m not saying whether or not it’s right for others to watch it – it’s not my place. But don’t put intentions and words in my mouth.
And to answer your question, Chesnut, my choice would be to see neither one.
Voorhees is in New Jersey.