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Reviews
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Movie of a lifetime
I had high expectations of this film, especially with some of the superlative reviews that appeared in The New Yorker and Rolling Stone. Everyone's superlatives don't do it justice. I have waited my life for a movie like this. Everything about it is right. One of the things I really liked is that it so clearly shows the brutal impact of homophobic culture, that it was homophobia that ruins the lives of these characters. It also captures the breathtaking beauty of the Rockies and what makes the West a place that has its own rewards for living in (I'm originally from Wyoming and many of the details were perfect, such as the sound of wind that is a ubiquitous presence in Wyoming). Jake Gylenhaal was wonderful (and beautiful) and Heath Ledger gave a performance of a lifetime. In the end it's the humanity that shines. See it and weep (seriously - you need a handkerchief with this one, regardless of your orientation). Brokeback Mountain will surely be remembered as not just the best film of 2005, but one of the great works in cinematic history.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
Fabulous!
The glowing reviews this movie has received are well deserved. I had been worried about seeing it because of how much Peter Jackson re-wrote "Two Towers" and presented scenes that undermined some of Tolkien's fundamental ideas. This time, Jackson followed Tolkien more closely and the worst that can be claimed are sins of omission. It's a real shame we didn't get to see Christopher Lee in this move; he totally rocked in the previous films. Telling us to wait for the "extended" version isn't right. Maybe Jackson should have foregone one of the too many endings in ROTK to give Lee some film time. That said, all the elements that worked in the previous movies were absolutely glorious in this film. The one new thing that I would add to so much that has already been written is that big kudos must go to the great Tolkien artists Alan Lee and John Howe whose artistry shaped so much of the imagery from the first moments of FOTR to the final scenes of ROTK. This historic trilogy would not have been the same without them. The LOTR enterprise has clearly been a great labor of love from all who worked on it over the years, and this final installment is a crowning achievement.
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
Disappointed and Angry
After the wonderful realization of "The Fellowship of The Ring," I was greatly anticipating the next installment with "The Two Towers." As a writer I can understand that some changes need to be made to adapt a book to a film; however, I think the title given to this movie should have been "Peter Jackson's Two Towers." The plot changes and additional scenes with Arwen were absolutely unnecessary for translating the book to film. These changes simply represented how the director wanted the books to go and the heck with Tolkein.
There was much to like about the movie in terms of art direction and special effects. Unfortunately, so much attention went to creating digital characters (and I'll say that Gollum was nicely done in large part to Andy Serkis' work) that the real actors were left to stand around and watch, or react to what the virtual characters were doing, which was the downfall of "Star Wars: The Phantom Menace." Thankfully Gollum was no Jar Jar Binks, but it still created a similar issue. The relationships between the characters in "Fellowship of the Ring" were beautiful and moving, and now all of a sudden everyone's emotionally disconnected with each other - except for Arwen and Strider, and Arwen never once set foot in the "Two Towers" book! Ugh.
I'm no purist where Tolkein is concerned and I would have been able to live with small changes necessary to make a movie. For example, I can understand why the film didn't end at the same place that the book did and that didn't bother me too much. Nevertheless, there were some very rich scenes in Tolkein's novel (from the growing friendship between Legolas and Gimli, to some very moving moments between Frodo and Sam, one of which awakens the best out of Gollum for a moment) that were ignored and replaced by Mr. Jackson's own ideas. This I cannot live with and makes me very angry. I hope he gets back to Tolkein's world when he finishes the last movie because I don't like Jackson's.
A Very Natural Thing (1974)
One of the Best Gay Movies Ever
I was genuinely surprised by how good this film is, especially given that it was made only a few years after Stonewall. The portrayal of the relationships the protagonist has was very moving and real, the psychological depth much more complex than most films that are made today, gay or straight. Of all the movies I've seen in my life, I have never seen so many beautiful images of gay male love that are so celebratory and happy. It's like a Walt Whitman love poem brought to vivid life. The movie is worth seeing just for the last five minutes alone.
The film is also an incredible historical archive. Some of my favorite sequences were interviews made with people on the street during the 1973 "Christopher Street Pride Parade," probably among the first Pride festivals ever. Many of the comments made could have been said today. This film shows a slice of life at the beginning of the gay sexual revolution, and at the same time deals with all the complicated issues of falling in love that remain timeless. That it shows life before AIDS also adds a layer of poignancy that the filmmakers could never have planned for.
I was sad to see that the principal figures in the movie, the actors and director, didn't do much more cinema work beyond this film. I hope they know they created a very special film that still can touch one's heart.