Brokeback Mountain
Brokeback Mountain is a 2005 American Neo-Western romantic drama film directed by Ang Lee and produced by Diana Ossana and James Schamus. Adapted from the 1997 short story of the same name by Annie Proulx, the screenplay was written by Ossana and Larry McMurtry. The film stars Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway, and Michelle Williams and depicts the complex emotional and sexual relationship between two American cowboys named Ennis Del Mar and Jack Twist in the American West from 1963 to 1983.
Lee became attached to the project after previous attempts to adapt the short story into a film did not materialize. Focus Features and River Road Entertainment would jointly produce and distribute the film. After Ledger and Gyllenhaal’s casting was announced in 2003, filming commenced in various locations in Alberta, Canada in 2004. Brokeback Mountain premiered at the 2005 Venice Film Festival and was released to theaters on December 9 that year. Gustavo Santaolalla scored the film’s original soundtrack.
The film received universal acclaim, in particular for Lee’s direction, its screenplay, and the performances of the cast (especially Ledger, Gyllenhaal, and Williams). Brokeback Mountain was included on many film critics’ 2005 top-ten lists. It was also commercially successful, and grossed $178 million worldwide against its $14 million budget. At the 78th Academy Awards, Brokeback Mountain was nominated for Best Picture and won three awards for Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Original Score. The film garnered seven nominations at the 63rd Golden Globe Awards, and won four awards. At the 59th British Academy Film Awards, Brokeback Mountain was nominated for nine awards, winning Best Film, Best Direction, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor (Gyllenhaal).
Brokeback Mountain was also the subject of controversies, such as its loss to Crash for the Academy Award for Best Picture, censorship, and criticism from conservative media outlets. The sexuality of the main characters has been subject to discussion. Brokeback Mountain has also been regarded as a turning point for the advancement of queer cinema into the mainstream.
In 2018, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
