Friday, December 23, 2005

Will Brokeback Mountain come to the bible belt?

I haven't gone on a rant for a while so here's one. Brokeback Mountain still hasn't come to Tulsa and it's getting a little ridiculous. Maybe I'll have to wait until it comes out on DVD since it might offend religious folk, homophobes and other narrow minded individuals who live in the region known as "The Bible Belt." I just want to see what is being hailed as the best film of the year.

I love westerns. I love director Ang Lee. I love novelist Larry McMurtry (he wrote the screenplay). I don't care that it's a love story between two men. Big deal. Two actors kissing and cuddling by the campfire. Yawn. It's 2006 people. The movie, from what I know of it, is less about the "men" and more about the turmoil of their love and the secrets that exist around them. Besides, a great movie is a great movie--I just want to be able to see it!

There are often cultural events that make me ashamed to be an Okie--the whole Tin Drum episode for example--and the absurd wait to get this lauded and mainstream--that's right, mainstream--movie because of its subject matter and where I live is just frustrating and wrong. Believe me, not everyone in the state of Oklahoma is a conservative who gets worked up in a lather about a movie about two cowboys in love. There might actually be film lovers, gay or straight, who want to see what might be one of the year's best films and maybe one day we'll get to see it.

3 comments:

Xtine said...

I still have to see this movie, and it would be a shame if censorship prevented half the country from seeing it.

Joshua Blevins Peck said...

Finally came to Tulsa, I'll be checking it out this weekend.

Joshua Blevins Peck said...

i'm seeing it tonight...