A Ninth Viewing Observation

[Penthesilea]

Last Monday I saw BBM in theatre again, and even the original version without dubbing (God bless those little arthouse cinemas  ).

Two new things, which I didn't notice before, or at least not in this way:

The first is a horse behind Alma. Not a real horse, but a children's toy, a hobbyhorse. In the fire-and-brimstone-crowd scene. She's sitting in an easy chair, knitting, talking about smartening up for the church social. The hobbyhorse is red and wooden, it leans at a rack behind her. I attach a pic of it.

I don't know if this is important, but it catched my eye. Reminded me of the horse pictures we see in the Twist household and the fact that we see mountain pictures, but no horse pics in the various Del Mar households.
Hm. Being around horses was everyday life for Ennis, the mountains were what he craved for (or what they symbolized for him).
Quickly becoming a salesman, Jack's everyday life didn't include being around horses anymore. Maybe the horses symbolized for him what the mountain pics did for Ennis: their time together.



The second thing I noticed was a confirmation for me. I think it's a consensus that Junior knew about her daddy and Jack, to whatever degree. "Maybe he's not the marrying kind." she tells Cassie. Directly after this conversation, Cassie drags Ennis to the dance floor. And the camera lingers on Junior's face.
This time it was like I was seeing her expression for the first time.  When I saw her face, I knew that she knew.
So yes, she knows about Ennis and Jack. I attach a pic of this scene, too.

[Front-Ranger]

Those are two good observations, Chrissi! And look--Jr's wearing the bluebird of happiness earrings as she gives her dad that look. They do have a close bond.

About the hobbyhorse behind Alma. We have a topic here called Still Lifes where those things are discussed. I invite you to come over there and post about this!

[Penthesilea]

Thanks, Lee. Yeah, the bluebird earrings.

I'll post the hobbyhorse oberservation over there, too.

I have another thought about the horses (that doesn't fit for Still Lifes, so I post it here):
The above mentioned is the third wooden horse in the film, yet it's different from the other two, who are clearly reminiscences of each other.
Are there more?

[mlewisusc]

Bump to find

[Brown Eyes]

Last Monday I saw BBM in theatre again, and even the original version without dubbing (God bless those little arthouse cinemas  ).

Two new things, which I didn't notice before, or at least not in this way:

The first is a horse behind Alma. Not a real horse, but a children's toy, a hobbyhorse. In the fire-and-brimstone-crowd scene. She's sitting in an easy chair, knitting, talking about smartening up for the church social. The hobbyhorse is red and wooden, it leans at a rack behind her. I attach a pic of it.

I don't know if this is important, but it catched my eye. Reminded me of the horse pictures we see in the Twist household and the fact that we see mountain pictures, but no horse pics in the various Del Mar households.
Hm. Being around horses was everyday life for Ennis, the mountains were what he craved for (or what they symbolized for him).
Quickly becoming a salesman, Jack's everyday life didn't include being around horses anymore. Maybe the horses symbolized for him what the mountain pics did for Ennis: their time together.


The second thing I noticed was a confirmation for me. I think it's a consensus that Junior knew about her daddy and Jack, to whatever degree. "Maybe he's not the marrying kind." she tells Cassie. Directly after this conversation, Cassie drags Ennis to the dance floor. And the camera lingers on Junior's face.
This time it was like I was seeing her expression for the first time.  When I saw her face, I knew that she knew.
So yes, she knows about Ennis and Jack. I attach a pic of this scene, too.

Thanks for these great observations!  I completely agree about all the pictures of horses and mountains (and usually they're pretty lame images of horses and mountains too) that appear in interior scenes of the cowboys' everyday lives. The best example of an imaginary horse in an interior is the cowboy-and-horse toy that Ennis finds in Jack's room at the end (that one, seems to be on an entirely different level than the other horse pictures and toys that we see in the film). It's interesting to remember that by the time Jack came for the 4 year reunion, he had already not only given up riding horses as part of his employment (doing "real" cowboy work), but he admits that he'd already given up his preferred version of being a cowboy - the rodeo.  So, by that relatively young age for Jack his "real" cowboy days were already in the past.  I suppose we're supposed to assume that his time in the mountains with Ennis and the horses, etc. (aside from the obvious romantic importance) is also a major nostalgic thing for Jack in this regard.


The other thing I wanted to point out here... is WOW!
 

Look at the two guys with cowboy hats directly behind Alma Jr. in the picture you posted.  It's almost like a thought bubble over her head (sort of saying... look two cowboys can be a couple).  Maybe that pair of men is a subtle clue to the audience to try to guess what Alma Jr. might have concluded about her Dad.  Wow, talk about an interesting instance of cowboy hats in the background.  It'd be cool if you could post this pic in the Black Hats/ White Hats thread!

[Brown Eyes]

Bumping this great old thread.
 

I wonder if this thread could win an award someday for being the thread with the most meandering topic.
 

[serious crayons]

Well, the subject line keeps it pretty open. And many of those who contributed are well beyond their ninth viewing by now! 

[belbbmfan]

Well, the subject line keeps it pretty open. And many of those who contributed are well beyond their ninth viewing by now! 

So am I! But the two cowboys behind Alma jr. were new to me. Now I'll just have to watch it again. 

[Brown Eyes]

Yeah, I think those two cowboys are an interesting detail and something I truly never noticed until the still was posted here.  And, for sure, I'm well, well beyond the 9th viewing.  Lost count months ago.

I love the background activity in this film.  One of the best aspects of the cinematography I think.  Almost like little subliminal messages that enhance the understanding of a given scene (all the black hats and white hats, different pairings of figures, nuzzling horses, etc.).

[belbbmfan]

hey Amanda,

I've just looked at this picture again. There are two cowboys, one sitting down and one standing up. But there's also a woman at the table. I couldn't help but notice that she has exactly the same hair colour as Alma junior.
  
Is this what Alma thought should/could have been? Her sitting in a bar having a drink with her dad and his partner?
Maybe I'm seeing things... but then again, there are no coincidences in this movie.