Author Topic: What are you looking at?  (Read 2269 times)

Offline Brown Eyes

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What are you looking at?
« on: July 12, 2008, 11:52:28 am »

I've been meaning to start this thread (with Elle's permission) ever since my recent visit out to see Elle with Roux and Lynne.  During the visit, Elle, Lynne and I watched BBM together and Elle made an observation that I thought was amazing and definitely thread-worthy.  It's something I'd never pondered before.

In the alley way after Jack drives away at the end of the Brokeback summer, when Ennis is kneeling, crying and having the dry heaves... he yells to the passerby "What the f*** are you looking at?"  And, Elle's observation here was that this is actually a double entendre.  The question "what are you looking at" goes right to the heart of all the identity questions that we always have about Ennis... and that Ennis clearly wrestles with himself.  Is the passerby "looking at" a gay man, a straight man, a bisexual man?  Is he looking at someone who's getting sick to his stomach in an alleyway or a cowboy who's heart was just broken by another man?  In looking at Ennis is he able to see through the classic cowboy exterior to something more complex and subtle about Ennis's character?  Or is the cowboy identity a sufficient mask?  Etc., etc.  It's really interesting to think about how complex that seemingly simple question is when it comes to Ennis... and it's especially interesting to hear the question coming out of Ennis's own mouth?

the world was asleep to our latent fuss - bowie

Offline Lynne

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Re: What are you looking at?
« Reply #1 on: July 12, 2008, 11:57:22 am »
This is a really good thread, Amanda.  Thank you for starting it.

I think this scene with Ennis questioning who he truly is nicely mirrors the scene later when he's asking Jack about Lureen suspecting and people out on the 'pavement' knowing. (I had never heard the term 'pavement' before in this context.)
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Offline Brown Eyes

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Re: What are you looking at?
« Reply #2 on: July 12, 2008, 12:05:00 pm »
Yes, I think it's an appropriate parallel with the "people on the pavement" question years later.  The difference, I think, is the level of Ennis's own self awareness.  At this very early stage at the end of the '63 Brokeback summer... his question "what are you looking at?"  is something that we as viewers can hear as multi-layered... But, in Ennis's own head at the time of uttering it, he probably doesn't intentionally mean that question to be introspective or about his personal identity.  In his emotional state, when he blurts that out, I'm sure he means it to be taken exclusively at face value by the passerby as a "mind your own business" type of statement.  But, we as viewers can hear that question as almost a literary device... that can mean a lot more to the audience than to the character himself at the time.

Later with the "people on the pavement" conversation with Jack, I really do think this is a fascinating moment when Ennis is revealing that he may have more self-awareness about his sexuality than he normally lets on.  It's almost like he's taking a slight step back from the early "I'm not queer" declaration.  By wondering if people on the pavement are looking at him (and Jack) like "they know"...  without actually saying the word "gay" or "queer" it's pretty easy to fill in one of those words into the statement.... "like they know...[we're queer/ gay/ different, etc.]."

« Last Edit: July 12, 2008, 04:41:45 pm by atz75 »
the world was asleep to our latent fuss - bowie