Brokeback Mountain: Good or Bad?

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For the past few days I have read posts by different bloggers and writers about Brokeback Mountain, the new gay movie staring Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger, as two ‘gay’ cowboys who fall in love while working together, grow up, move away and marry… supposedly coming to live a ‘normal,’ straight life with wives and children. Yet, through the years, they continue to see each other. Now, I haven’t seen this movie. I’m not here trying to do a review of the movie itself. All I am trying to do is make an prediction as to how the movie’s existence will have on the LGBT community and the straight community’s view and opinion of the LGBT community. There are a few good things I can think of about this film, along with a some bad things as well. The first thing is that this movie even exists at all. The fact that Hollywood would create a love story between two men is worthy of praise and applaud. Maybe Hollywood’s ‘closet’ will begin to open as LGBT issues and themes become more prevalent in their films. The second good think I can think of about this film is that it makes open to the straight community the prejudices, biases and discrimination that the LGBT community faces, in that the film, from what I have heard, addresses societal oppression. Again, from what I have heard about the film, it is the societal oppression which keeps the love and relationship between the two characters secret and hidden from their friends and their loved ones, at least for a while. Gay love in this film, from what I have heard and/or read is presented as true and as something natural. Add in the fact that the love between the two men is not demonized, then the LGBT community has something to be proud of… Hollywood is, for once, not placing gay characters as the negative and/or ‘humorous’ elements of the film. Now, of course, there are a few bad things about this film. This film does not end ‘happily, ever after.’ I don’t think I have ever seen a mainstream film in which two gay characters end the movie being happy. I wish Hollywood would create a film involving gay characters like that of any other love story between straight couples. Why can’t Hollywood present gay love as ending positively? In this film the relationship gets destroyed by society’s prejudices, which, I guess, could be a good thing about the film. Whatever, though. I will just have to wait until I see Brokeback Mountain before I make any final judgment. Who wants to go to the movies with me?