Brokeback Mountain: Our Community's Common Bond > Brokeback Mountain Open Forum
"I figured you were sore from that punch"
jpwagoneer1964:
--- Quote from: Ellemeno on July 20, 2006, 02:55:07 am ---I'm late to this party - womderful thread chock full of favorite posters. I think the reason Jack doesn't really answer Ennis in the movie (about being sore from that punch) and replies tangentially in the story (something like "You won't catch me like that again") is because he has long since forgiven Ennis. I think Jack forgives Ennis easily again and again.
--- End quote ---
Jack does answer, saying softy nah when Ennis mentions the punch.
Brown Eyes:
--- Quote from: mvansand76 on July 20, 2006, 09:03:21 am ---And I think Jack understood why Ennis threw that punch, he understood the underlying emotions like no one else, because he had the same emotions, he was feeling the same pain. That's why he wasn't acting angry anymore at the time they said goodbye...
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This is a good way of looking at the situation I think. Maybe Jack also realized (almost immediately) that Ennis would feel very, very bad about the punch... because after all Jack felt very, very bad about giving Ennis the bloody nose (even if it was more accidental). In certain ways, there is some nice symmetry here.
--- Quote from: Ellemeno on July 20, 2006, 02:55:07 am ---I think Jack forgives Ennis easily again and again.
--- End quote ---
It just seems that Jack is somehow able to get over things... lots of things... and just keep going. He doesn't seem like he's one to carry a grudge (much). He does carry a grudge about his Dad (not teaching him how to rodeo and not coming to see him ride...), but that's probably a special situation.
--- Quote from: jpwagoneer1964 on July 20, 2006, 10:07:49 am ---Jack does answer, saying softy nah when Ennis mentions the punch.
--- End quote ---
I think Jack might be mainly surprised and a little flattered at that moment in the motel when Ennis demonstrates that he's been worrying about that punch for 4 years. Ennis is cute here because he really reveals how much he's been worrying about Jack. Not only was he worried that Jack might have hurt feelings over the punch, but he's also clearly been very worried about Jack winding up in the army. In a way, that kind of concern over Jack's well-being is very romantic... and I think Jack gets this as he's lying there.
:-*
dly64:
--- Quote from: atz75 on July 20, 2006, 02:16:23 pm ---This is a good way of looking at the situation I think. Maybe Jack also realized (almost immediately) that Ennis would feel very, very bad about the punch... because after all Jack felt very, very bad about giving Ennis the bloody nose (even if it was more accidental). In certain ways, there is some nice symmetry here.
It just seems that Jack is somehow able to get over things... lots of things... and just keep going. He doesn't seem like he's one to carry a grudge (much).
--- End quote ---
The more I think about this, the more I think the “punch” is emblematic of Jack and Ennis’ relationship. Unintentionally or not, Ennis delivers a “punch” to Jack over and over. The first actual punch is symbolic of the pain Ennis is internalizing but is unable to express verbally. Post mountain, however, Jack is constantly getting “beaten up”. Think about it …. when they finally see each other after four years, Ennis refuses to have a life with Jack. This is the theme for the rest of their lives. The one time when Jack thinks Ennis has reconsidered is after Ennis’ divorce. Jack travels 14 hours only to find that Ennis is still unable to give himself to Jack. That scene is a turning point. Yes, Jack doesn’t hold a “grudge” only because he loves Ennis so deeply and can not imagine a life without him. At that moment Jack knows that the best he’ll get is the few “fishing” trips once or twice a year. It is a devastating moment. It doesn’t mean that Jack doesn’t try …. “Maybe it’s time you moved outta there. You know, set yourself up somewhere different. Maybe Texas.” As usual, Ennis rejects the idea. By that point, however, Jack is not as affected by the pain. It has become a pattern and Jack knows it will not change.
--- Quote ---I think Jack might be mainly surprised and a little flattered at that moment in the motel when Ennis demonstrates that he's been worrying about that punch for 4 years. Ennis is cute here because he really reveals how much he's been worrying about Jack. Not only was he worried that Jack might have hurt feelings over the punch, but he's also clearly been very worried about Jack winding up in the army. In a way, that kind of concern over Jack's well-being is very romantic... and I think Jack gets this as he's lying there.
--- End quote ---
The motel scene is wonderful because it is so intimate and honest. This scene shows how much they truly love each other. It is one time (albeit not the only time) where Ennis makes himself vulnerable. He is painfully honest when he says, “I’m stuck with what I got here.” The expression on his face is one of pure sadness. It is obvious throughout that scene how much Ennis has missed Jack. Look at how many times Ennis caresses Jack’s arms. It is lovely. After that, however, Ennis’ fears overtake his feelings for Jack. Thus begins the pattern of hurting Jack over and over again.
Front-Ranger:
I really like reading about your thought processes here. This has caused me to rethink that whole scene.
Brown Eyes:
Hi Diane,
Nice post! Sometimes I feel like watching Jack get hurt over and over again in the film is like watching a puppy being kicked.
:'(
Sometimes I can hardly stand to watch certain scenes... especially the post-divorce fiasco as you pointed out. I think one of the hardest parts of this dilemma he was in with Ennis is that he knows that this relationship is the right one. He knows that he loves Ennis and he knows that Ennis loves him back... how incredibly frustrating to have the thing that he wants (or that they both want), but only in little doses and the full-blown expression of their love (living together) just beyond his/ their reach. And the main obstacle to making things progress is the fear in Ennis's head. When Jack suggests Ennis move to Texas, you can tell he's desperately trying to find new tactics to push Ennis beyond the demons in his head and to consider some new alternatives. I think Jack's hopefulness about being able to pry Ennis away from his painful attachment to his sense of societal duty comes from the moment in the motel. Just as you said... when Ennis makes that horribly sad statement - "I’m stuck with what I got here"- I think Jack hears this as an opportunity. Jack probably hears this as a sorrow for Ennis that Jack can actually help "fix". Of course, Jack doesn't know the extent of the emotional pain and complexity that he's dealing with in terms of Ennis until the Earl story.
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