Brokeback Mountain: Our Community's Common Bond > Brokeback Mountain Open Forum
Why is the "dozy embrace" in the film?
Brown Eyes:
--- Quote from: Mikaela on July 26, 2006, 08:48:42 am ---I am immensely grateful to Annie Proulx - for creating Ennis and Jack in the first place, of course - but almost equally grateful for her whole-hearted acceptance and enthusiasm for the film and the creative process of writers, director, cast and crew. The "getting movied" essay, where she among other matters says that Heath Ledger understood Ennis better than she herself did, is very liberating to me. Her statement that "My story was not mangled but enlarged into huge and gripping imagery that rattled minds and squeezed hearts" confirms it's entirely OK to love both film and story, differences and inconsistencies and all - without having to figure out which is the "truer" or "better" representation of any one event - without having to reconsile or explain anything if we don't want to. The short story is there, informing the our understanding of the film, - but not limiting it in *any* way.
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I also think it's absolutely wonderful that Proulx is so excited and happy about the movie. She seemed quite pleased to cooprerate and to communicate with the filmmakers, actors, etc. It makes me feel better than if the movie truly upset the original author. But the idea of "finishing the story" ourselves is very powerful to me... And the idea that the filmmakers tackled the story in their own way seems important too. This is such a multifaceted story and it's been told in so many different ways! Very interesting. It's amazing that it's been told in two different forms by Proulx (the New Yorker and the fuller short story) and now we have this very powerful film (which because of it's exposure is now the primary way that most people will be familiar with the story... at least in the general public). It's hard to pin point which version is the correct or definitive version (if there is such a thing).
dly64:
--- Quote from: atz75 on July 26, 2006, 11:34:24 am ---This is such a multifaceted story and it's been told in so many different ways! Very interesting. It's amazing that it's been told in two different forms by Proulx (the New Yorker and the fuller short story) and now we have this very powerful film (which because of it's exposure is now the primary way that most people will be familiar with the story... at least in the general public). It's hard to pin point which version is the correct or definitive version (if there is such a thing).
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I think there is no "definitive version" ... that's why I love this film and story. There is a lot of ambiguity and it allows the observer/reader to make his/her own conclusions. I find it helpful, however, to hear all POV. I have been able to see things and hear things that I had previously not considered .
serious crayons:
--- Quote from: atz75 on July 25, 2006, 11:32:11 pm ---But, I think it's OK to critique Proulx a little bit.
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It had better be! As someone who earns some (meager) pay as a book reviewer, I'd be in trouble if it weren't OK to question authors' decisions. Authors can choose to write whatever they like, but readers (and critics) get to decide how well those choices work. In the case of Proulx' story, I think most of her choices work very, very well. Obviously, since most of them wound up in a movie I have spent the past six months discussing. But there are a few choices I don't agree with, and that line happens to be one of them. Others may feel that line is perfect just as it is, which is fine, too.
I'd venture to say that the filmmakers questioned the story, too. Well, they may have loved the way all of the elements worked in the story itself. But it's obvious that they at least thought some of those elements should be changed for the movie.
--- Quote from: atz75 on July 26, 2006, 11:34:24 am ---But the idea of "finishing the story" ourselves is very powerful to me... And the idea that the filmmakers tackled the story in their own way seems important too. This is such a multifaceted story and it's been told in so many different ways! ... It's hard to pin point which version is the correct or definitive version (if there is such a thing).
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--- Quote from: dly64 on July 26, 2006, 11:54:52 am ---I think there is no "definitive version" ... that's why I love this film and story. There is a lot of ambiguity and it allows the observer/reader to make his/her own conclusions. I find it helpful, however, to hear all POV. I have been able to see things and hear things that I had previously not considered .
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I agree with all of this! There is no definitive version. Neither is beholden to the other. And so many parts of the movie (and story) are left SO ambiguous, I don't think they are meant just to be subtle, but are designed to allow for more than one interpretation.
--- Quote from: Mikaela on July 26, 2006, 08:48:42 am ---I do know that every time I've seen the film to the end, I've always had this huge urge to start back at the beginning, - to get to be reminded of Jack and Ennis in happier days once more. I think that was part of the reason why I saw the film a double digit times in the cinema.
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It's a product that creates its own demand -- like cigarettes or something. When you get to the end, it's so sad that you go back to the beginning iin search of happiness and closure, hoping in some small part of your brain that it will come out differently this time, then you get to the end and get sad all over again, so you go back to the beginning ...
Samrim:
Although I regard the 'dozy embrace' scene as pivotal, and almost overpoweringly emotional, and it reduces me to pathetic snivels with monotonous regularity, I still feel it doesn't fit comfortably into the lake side scene. Early on it had ME confused too about what was going on, even though we now know just how powerful a metaphor it is for the bond between our boys!
Having said that, I haven't a clue where it would fit any better, possibly AFTER Ennis had driven away that last time! (Gulp)
:-\
jpwagoneer1964:
--- Quote from: Samrim on July 26, 2006, 02:18:29 pm ---Although I regard the 'dozy embrace' scene as pivotal, and almost overpoweringly emotional, and it reduces me to pathetic snivels with monotonous regularity, I still feel it doesn't fit comfortably into the lake side scene. Early on it had ME confused too about what was going on, even though we now know just how powerful a metaphor it is for the bond between our boys!
Having said that, I haven't a clue where it would fit any better, possibly AFTER Ennis had driven away that last time! (Gulp)
:-\
--- End quote ---
The only part I don't like about the 'dozey embrace" is the contrast of Jack's then to the then present. Heartbreaking. I do agree that Ennis does look into Jack's face from behind.
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