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

The shared flashback

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RouxB:
I'm a sheep-I don't really buy that theory either. I have never felt a need to know how Jack died so don't subscribe to one interpretation over the other (but I hope it was the accident). I have argued uh, passionately  ;) , that the cause of death is meant to be ambiguous and have certainly been in a pout when it argued otherwise  :P

Meryl:
The shared flashback is an interesting idea, but littlewing makes a good point--Lureen wouldn't know the details of the attack, and for that matter, neither would Ennis.

There's a third possibility.  The director could simply be showing us the truth, allowing us to use that information in deciding how to interpret both Ennis's and Lureen's behavior.

dly64:

--- Quote from: meryl on June 30, 2006, 01:41:14 am ---The shared flashback is an interesting idea, but littlewing makes a good point--Lureen wouldn't know the details of the attack, and for that matter, neither would Ennis.

There's a third possibility.  The director could simply be showing us the truth, allowing us to use that information in deciding how to interpret both Ennis's and Lureen's behavior.
--- End quote ---

From what I have read, the third option seems unlikely. In all the interviews with Diana Ossana, Larry McMurty, and Ang Lee (as well as critics) it is meant to be ambiguous. Therefore, the viewer can make up his/her own mind.

Midnight24:

--- Quote from: meryl on June 30, 2006, 01:41:14 am ---There's a third possibility.  The director could simply be showing us the truth, allowing us to use that information in deciding how to interpret both Ennis's and Lureen's behavior.

--- End quote ---

That's what I had thought at first, but now I see it as Ennis's flashback and not a scene of what really had happened to Jack. I really feel that they left it up to the individual to decide what happens and that the guys beating Jack was just what Ennis interpreted.

saucycobblers:
Great discussion ladies!


--- Quote from: dly64 on June 28, 2006, 09:42:40 am ---It emphasizes Ennis' fear and paranoia.
--- End quote ---

I'd never thought about it this way, and I like this idea a lot. Many of you have said things along similar lines and i like the idea that Lureen might be telling the truth and Ennis's fear leads him to interpret it differently. This makes me think of his reaction to the white truck when he rejects Jack after the divorce, and his fear of being seen when they re-unite initially. It's almost as if he imagines he's being watched when he's not, but is unaware of when he is actually being watched (by Alma). The curious thing is that in the book it's implied that he knew Alma had seen them, but not in the film. So he's only really afraid of men seeing him and Jack together.


--- Quote from: littlewing1957 on June 30, 2006, 01:01:46 am ---But the flashback seems too specific for Lureen to image, IMO.  Now Ennis had more of a reference because of what his father told him and what he saw with his own eyes as a boy.  Does this make any sense?

--- End quote ---

Hey Littlewing! I think we had a similar discussion about this on an IMdB thread. Glad to see you here... I used to enjoy reading your posts  :)

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