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Brokeback Mountain (Blu-ray)
Year:
Rating: M
Distributor: Roadhsow
The Disc: 4.0
FILMINK rates DVDs and Blu-rays out of 5
Knocking over a few taboos on its way to awards glory, Brokeback Mountain was 2005's indie darling. Scripted by Lonesome Dove scribe Larry McMurtry and based on Annie Proulx's book, the film begins in 1963 as Ennis Del Mar (Heath Ledger) and Jack Twist (Jake Gyllenhaal) arrive at Montana's Brokeback Mountain in search of work as cowboys. Over the months, they tend to a local farmer's herd, and the
pair bond as friends and, unexpectedly, as lovers. The next two decades are tumultuous for the pair as both marry unhappily, start families, and attempt to deny their true feelings. After some time, the lovers reunite on yearly camping trips to Brokeback, which prove to be fleeting moments of happiness amidst the genuinely lonely lives that the pair are forced to lead. The standout here is Ledger, who is eerily magnetic as the haunted Ennis. Rodrigo Prieto's stunning Oscar-nominated cinematography translates well to Blu-Ray's 1080p resolution, and the 5.1 DTS-HD ably adds to the film's haunting beauty. The extras, however, are slim at best: there's no commentary and just a handful of featurettes focusing on the critical reception to the film and to the media reaction at the time of its release. However you look at it though, Brokeback Mountain was groundbreaking, and stands as an example of finely honed storytelling that rises above its "issue-tainment" subject matter to tell a painfully moving tale of love, loss and yearning.