Brokeback Mountain: Our Community's Common Bond > Brokeback Mountain Open Forum
TOTW 09/07: Did it seem like Jack was responsive to Randall's flirtatiousness?
Penthesilea:
Happy Monday everyone :)
A little bit later than usual, but for most of you it's still before noon - and here we go with a brand-new TOTW.
This week, the suggestion for the TOTW came from our very own Amanda/atz75. Yay Amanda, thank you for your suggestion :D!
And here's the question at full length:
Did it seem like Jack was being responsive to Randall's flirtatiousness at the Charity Dance?
Was Jack openly flirting with Randall with their wives sitting right besides them? Did Jack make eye-contact with Randall instead of LaShawn when asking 'Wanna dance?' How about Jack and Randall sitting on the bench?
LauraGigs:
(Oh this is a good one. I had seen BBM just once before the long wait for video, during which I took in all the discussion on IMDB.)
On just the one viewing, I was positive that Jack was in no way interested in Randall. He did seem to pick up Randall's vibe at the dinner table. But when Randall asked on the bench, Jack seemed as if he'd just been offered Brand X beans — and his expression was a mix of shock at Randall's ability to be so brazen, and a faraway 'missing Ennis' look.
I stuck by this impression a long time. (iirc, Littlewing and I were the main holdouts swearing there was nothing, ever, between Jack and Randall!)
I was eventually swayed by other folks' observations and by subsequent BBM viewings. Obviously, Jack has no chance to (verbally) respond to Randall in the scene we see. But latter parts of the film (OMT's mention of the 'ranch neighbor' etc.) indicate Jack accepted the "fishing trips" offer, although it was a pale second-best to what he wanted with Ennis.
The "wanna dance?" in the dining room? The excellent way it was shot deliberately makes it vague and intriguing. But after repeated Zapruder-like reviews of the scene, I do believe Jack is looking at LaShawn.
The trick that makes it look otherwise: when the camera cuts to her and Randall, Randall is looking straight at Jack but LaShawn's eyes shift from Lureen to Jack — making Randall look like the 'recipient' of the question for that split second. But in the previous cut, Jack is looking at LaShawn. (imo)
Kd5000:
Well Jack is just so laidback for starters. It's hard to tell. He didn't seem responsive to Randall's flirtations at the dance hall, though given the circumstances, I wouldn't expect him to be.
I don't know. Randall's flirtations might have gone over Jack's head. Maybe they (Jack/Randall) talked in the truck (if Lashawn let them) after they picked up Randall and his wife when their vehicle had broken down.
When they are sitting in the bench outside, Jack looked more surprised then interested if you ask me. He certainly didn't jump up and say, yeah sure, let's go to that crappy house. Of course, bigmouth Lashawn interrupts the conversation.
Jack was quite guarded given the circumstances. No doubt, Childress is a small town. Jack even knows Randall's boss. So he probably figured he would bump into Randall again and pick up where they left off.
All in all, it hard to say. Gay married males flirting with each other while their wives are right there. And no doubt Lureen was already wondering if Jack had any "secrets."
SFEnnisSF:
Yes, it was a trick with the camera that threw you for a loop when Jack asks Lashawn to dance. He directly looks at LaShawn when he asks her to dance. But the trick with the cameras throws you off a little. Now, was this intentional by Ang or not? Muwahahaha!
Now we know from reading scripts and such that they originally intended to show Jack getting dropped off at his truck by Randall in front of the mechanics. So the intention was for them to get together. Jack even says at the final lake camp he's got a thing goin' with the forman's wife (a lie, it's actually with the foreman, but he could never tell Ennis that.)
However, the way the final cut of the movie is edited, the scene (as is most of the whole movie) is presented to us as ambiguous. We are never shown Jack fully accepting Randall's offer, but we do see him contemplating it.
The key for me that he did get together with Randall is when he tells Ennis about the "foreman's wife". As far as flirting at the table, I think Jack knew exactly what Randall's body language meant. But as Kd5000 said, he didn't exactly jump on it right then and there. (He didn't even answer Randall about it outside, but they were interrupted by the girls before he really had a chance to anyway.)
Fran:
--- Quote from: sfericsf on September 24, 2007, 12:43:35 pm ---Yes, it was a trick with the camera that threw you for a loop when Jack asks Lashawn to dance. He directly looks at LaShawn when he asks her to dance. But the trick with the cameras throws you off a little. Now, was this intentional by Ang or not? Muwahahaha!
Now we know from reading scripts and such that they originally intended to show Jack getting dropped off at his truck by Randall in front of the mechanics. So the intention was for them to get together. Jack even says at the final lake camp he's got a thing goin' with the forman's wife (a lie, it's actually with the foreman, but he could never tell Ennis that.)
However, the way the final cut of the movie is edited, the scene (as is most of the whole movie) is presented to us as ambiguous. We are never shown Jack fully accepting Randall's offer, but we do see him contemplating it.
The key for me that he did get together with Randall is when he tells Ennis about the "foreman's wife". As far as flirting at the table, I think Jack knew exactly what Randall's body language meant. But as Kd5000 said, he didn't exactly jump on it right then and there. (He didn't even answer Randall about it outside, but they were interrupted by the girls before he really had a chance to anyway.)
--- End quote ---
And don't forget that OMT mentions "another fella" that Jack was going to bring up to the ranch, the so-called neighbor of his from down in Texas. I assumed he was talking about Randall here, so I guess Jack and Randall did connect at some point.
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