Brokeback Mountain: Our Community's Common Bond > Brokeback Mountain Open Forum
At what moment in BBM did you realize that they were falling in love?
Artiste:
Thanks atz75!
You say this: --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Quote from: brokeplex on Yesterday at 10:02:59 AM
No, Ennis did not "wake up to love" upon seeing Jack. He disovered that in his isolation he had an interest in Jack as a person, then later saw Jack as a convenient sexual outlet, and later still he began to feel affection and a highly sublimated type of love for Jack. That all said, I believe that it was not until 20 years later, when he was in the closet at OMT's house holding the two shirts that he finally admitted and accepted to himself that he loved Jack. Hence the tragedy of the short story and the movie.
I still believe that Ennis was aware that he was in love with Jack earlier than the closet scene at the end. He may not have been able to put a word to his feelings articulately as early as the '63 summer. But, I think he was aware of a profound emotion that had everything to do with his feelings for Jack. Early on he may have been deeply invested in a type of denial that may have prevented him from explicitly thinking about the term "love." But, I still think that as early as TS2 he was aware of the emotion (un-named or not). And, I think he really feels the effects of this as something that will impact the rest of his life as soon as he sees Jack dismantling the tent. He immediately sits on the log and pouts... leading to his quite moment sitting alone in the grass and then the unhappy-tussle... the dry-heaves in the alley, etc. All of these things seem to point to a strong emotion related to his uneasiness separating from Jack.
I think the word "love" only really comes into play as an articulate term at the end... spurred by conversations with Cassie, the experience at Lightning Flat, the last conversation with Alma Jr., etc.
In terms of the when did they fall in love question... I think there's a distinction to be made about when the emotion seemed to start happening (mutually) and when the word becomes articulate.
..............
May I agree with you. And think that even love's arrow starts right away in the movie since Jack has an eye and presents it right away to Ennis, who does respond!!
What is: the dry-heaves in the alley? I am lost. Please explain. Give me concrete example(s).
Hugs!!
serious crayons:
--- Quote ---What is: the dry-heaves in the alley? I am lost. Please explain. Give me concrete example(s).
--- End quote ---
Artiste, that refers to the scene at the end of the Brokeback summer when, after Jack and Ennis part in Signal, Ennis walks away and then goes into the alley and retches, cries and beats the wall. "Dry heaves" is retching without expelling actual vomit.
Artiste:
Thanks ineedcrayons!
You sure are clear. I am grateful to you doing so!
You say this: Artiste, that refers to the scene at the end of the Brokeback summer when, after Jack and Ennis part in Signal, Ennis walks away and then goes into the alley and retches, cries and beats the wall. "Dry heaves" is retching without expelling actual vomit.
....................
Ineedcrayons, to me, that is quite significant of an act, in the movie! You think so too and why? Is it too in the book?
Is this act of retching, one of Ennis' thought or sub-conscience; or one since he wanted to continue to love and be with Jack, there and then after coming down from the mountain with the sheep?
Is this retching an act which shows that both Ennis and Jack are indeed in love?? At that moment both Ennis and Jack know that they are indeed in real love thoughts?? (Does someone realize that as that as their first fall in love act consciously??
Hugs!!
moremojo:
Actually, on my first viewing, I saw the retching as indicative of Ennis's inner torment about what he had done on the mountain; that is to say, I thought it illustrated his deep self-loathing for having had sexual relations with another man. I saw the film before I had read the story in any depth (had only scanned it in the bookstore), and had no knowledge of story-Ennis coming to understand the retching himself as a sign that he "should never have let [Jack] out of [his] sight". The quiet sobs that we hear from movie-Ennis after the retching also seem to suggest the pangs of heartbreak. It is certainly possible that the scene conveys a multiplicity of meanings (and can certainly be interpreted in more than one way).
serious crayons:
--- Quote from: moremojo on December 14, 2007, 07:46:22 pm ---The quiet sobs that we hear from movie-Ennis after the retching also seem to suggest the pangs of heartbreak. It is certainly possible that the scene conveys a multiplicity of meanings (and can certainly be interpreted in more than one way).
--- End quote ---
Well put, Scott. Like so much in the movie, the scene is very ambiguous and is open to multiple interpretations. Personally, I'm more in the heartbreak camp than the self-loathing camp. But there might be a touch of inner torment, as well.
Well, more than a touch, I guess. Inner torment is pretty much Ennis' middle name!
:-\
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