Brokeback Mountain: Our Community's Common Bond > Brokeback Mountain Open Forum

Why is the "dozy embrace" in the film?

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Front-Ranger:
Yes, I believe that Alma Jr. was crazy about her dad and did not get enough attention from him...but what daughter does get all the attention she needs from a dad?? I am thrilled that my daughter and her dad are very close... And Alma Jr. didn't get the attention she wanted from her mom. When Jr. was small, Alma was very attentive, but when the third baby came along, Jr. said Alma and Monroe were "strict with her" to the point that she wanted to move out.

On whether Jr. knows Ennis is in love with Jack, yes, I think she figured it out. She is a smart girl, and because she doesn't talk much she is able to watch, listen, and be perceptive. She has an unspoken bond with her dad. I'm sure she would have felt the vibes between her dad and Jack even during that brief encounter. And that time when she was unceremoniously dumped in her mother's arms while her dad went away, hugging her mom while she was wracked with sobs--if that had happened to me it would have been indelibly marked in my memory.

dly64:

--- Quote from: Front-Ranger on July 28, 2006, 06:41:40 pm ---Yes, I believe that Alma Jr. was crazy about her dad and did not get enough attention from him...but what daughter does get all the attention she needs from a dad?? I am thrilled that my daughter and her dad are very close... And Alma Jr. didn't get the attention she wanted from her mom. When Jr. was small, Alma was very attentive, but when the third baby came along, Jr. said Alma and Monroe were "strict with her" to the point that she wanted to move out.

On whether Jr. knows Ennis is in love with Jack, yes, I think she figured it out. She is a smart girl, and because she doesn't talk much she is able to watch, listen, and be perceptive. She has an unspoken bond with her dad. I'm sure she would have felt the vibes between her dad and Jack even during that brief encounter. And that time when she was unceremoniously dumped in her mother's arms while her dad went away, hugging her mom while she was wracked with sobs--if that had happened to me it would have been indelibly marked in my memory.
--- End quote ---

I think what you are saying is perceptive. From a psychological standpoint, children who do not get what they need from one parent or another, there is the need to please. I see that with Jack and his father (the SOB OMT). I also see that with Ennis’ kids. Despite his lack of parental support, his daughters (especially junior) put him on a pedestal (it is obvious during the Thanksgiving scene). In addition to when Alma, Jr. was little being held by her mother while she (Alma) fell apart …. the Thanksgiving fiasco would have also been a big clue.

There is also a sense, IMO, that Alma, Jr. is somewhat protective of her dad. Her expression when Ennis drives up with Cassie in the car is one of, “who is this woman and why are you wasting your time?”

Front-Ranger:
You're so right (do U have more of a name, or did yr parents just stop at dly64? :)) Those are two other good examples. ALso, remember when Ennis and Jr. are talking in the cab and she cuts him off when he starts to say, "That doesn't mean I wouldn't like..." She protects him from having to squeamishly say he loves her, even jumping out of the truck before he can say goodbye. No hugs, no I love you, but he does call her sweetheart. I would have liked to hear little darlin there... 

dly64:

--- Quote from: Front-Ranger on July 28, 2006, 07:07:38 pm ---You're so right (do U have more of a name, or did yr parents just stop at dly64? :)) Those are two other good examples. Also, remember when Ennis and Jr. are talking in the cab and she cuts him off when he starts to say, "That doesn't mean I wouldn't like..." She protects him from having to squeamishly say he loves her, even jumping out of the truck before he can say goodbye. No hugs, no I love you, but he does call her sweetheart. I would have liked to hear little darlin there... 
--- End quote ---

Believe it or not … you have triggered a thought when you said, “do U have more of a name, or did yr parents just stop at dly64? :)” (By the way, it is Diane).

I think there is significance when Jack introduces himself and Ennis replies by only giving his first name. Jack asks him, “did your folks just stop at Ennis?” and Ennis adds, “del Mar.” After that point, Ennis refers to himself as Ennis del Mar. He says this to Cassie and Lureen. Cassie also says to Ennis, “I don’t get you Ennis del Mar” and OMT says, “Jack used to say …. Ennis del Mar ….” In some ways I see this as symbolizing Ennis as a lost soul (when we first meet him outside Aguirre’s trailer)  … a young boy who has experienced great loss and poverty in his life. A boy who has never experienced true love …. who sees himself as insignificant. When Jack asks him about his last name, he is on the road to self realization. He finds, in Jack, the strength to become himself. Food for thought!  :)

stevenedel:

--- Quote from: dly64 on July 28, 2006, 07:46:02 pm --- In some ways I see this as symbolizing Ennis as a lost soul (when we first meet him outside Aguirre's trailer) ...  a young boy who has experienced great loss and poverty in his life. A boy who has never experienced true love... who sees himself as insignificant. When Jack asks him about his last name, he is on the road to self realization. He finds, in Jack, the strength to become himself. Food for thought!  :)
--- End quote ---

Nice thought. When Jack and Ennis first meet, Ennis is all but alone in the world. His family name means little to him, beacuse he hardly has any family left to fall back on. I like it how the memory of that first meeting is invoked when he meets Cassie. He introduces himself as Ennis, than hesitates for a beat, then adds Del Mar. During the brief silence in between you can almost hear Jack say "You folks just stop at Ennis"?

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