2005’s Brokeback Mountain was groundbreaking when it hit the big screens, arguably kickstarting a very real conversation about same-sex love for many Americans who might otherwise have avoided the topic indefinitely.
It certainly made an impact on younger audiences, but what about the older generation?
Though your first instinct might be to assume that people in the 70+ range wouldn’t be so down with the cowboy love story, VH1 gathered some anecdotal evidence quite to the contrary.
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Oddly, this comes just one week after we saw the film get a remake with a senior citizen cast — go figure.
Related: Brokeback Mountain Author Wishes She’d Never Written The Story
They conduced interviews with some elderly film buffs, and here’s what they turned up:
“I was 71 in 2005 when the movie Brokeback Mountain was first shown. Through my early years and even today, I consider myself to be basically free of prejudices. Growing up in the New York City area, I paid little attention to differences in race, color, religion, sexual orientation, etc. However, being an avid movie fan I was somewhat apprehensive about the potential for the showing of homosexual-related explicit scenes, which I do have a problem in viewing. I did see the film, – enjoyed it immensely and never did feel uncomfortable. In fact, in many ways, I felt that this story had to be shown. Generations of suppressing and ’hiding’ these issues simply had to stop.”
– Sheldon, 81
“Brokeback Mountain was a movie about the relationship between two men. The movie was extremely well done and challenged one to think about those relationships. Both my wife and I enjoyed the movie and were not offended by any of it. We also enjoyed reading the book.”
– Merle, 83
“An aspect of the movie Brokeback Mountain that I found most interesting was the strong homophobic response it evoked from many of my acquaintances whose backgrounds were similar to mine. I would never have anticipated such strong negative responses like ’disgusting’ and ’revolting’ to an honest attraction between two men. I wonder if their response would have been different had the story involved two ballet dancers as opposed to two rugged cowboys. Despite the setting, I saw the movie as an unconventional love story with a sad ending.”
– Larry, 87
“An extraordinary portrayal of two men caught between their mutual sensual attraction and their inability to face living together in the wake of society’s condemnation. One encourages the other to be true to his feelings, but the resulting guilt, fear of discovery and lack of courage results in a later-in-life regret of a ’road not taken.’”
– Terry, 80
Matthew David Thompson
Matthew McMillion
vonlmo
On the contrary, the Millenials & Gen X’rs largely ignored BBM. It did not resonate w their experiences unlike the Boomers.
scotshot
@galatians328:
NEWS FLASH!!!
AGE BIGOTRY IS WIDELY RECOGNIZED AND CELEBRATED – IN HETERO CULTURE ! ! !
Who’s on the cover of Vogue? 14 year old girls. Movie stars? Jennifer Lawrence, Zac Efron. Tv stars? Sofia Vergara, males? All ages, as white males control entertainment. Music stars? Taylor Swift, Adele, Justin Bieber.
You seem to have an obsession with the word QUEER and use it as derogatory. Newsflash: Many of us refer to ourselves as Queer and wear it as badge of honor.
Galatians 328? You’re using the wrong screen name – Galatian 328 is about love not hate.
russellhm
I saw the ice-breaking film at age 64 in San Francisco where I lived. I always went to matinees of films I thought would appeal because there are fewer people and no one chatting. The theatre, a popular small multiplex, was almost empty. Perfect. I found it moving, erotic, romantic, poignant, and sad. I do believe Annie Proulx’s comments appeared not long after the film’s initial release. She is simply a fantastic author and all her works deserve attention. Alas, she is likely from then on to be recognized for this story; she was known and respected before by the literati. But Jake is so right. I opened channels of communication and allowed a non-gay bar litany of a gay romance to be relevant. I felt walking out after the screening that it is likely there are numerous stories everywhere about two such men and their feelings. But they must conceal those feelings. The film’s ending, however, makes that even sadder.
Daggerman
..I am British so Americans would probably think my opinion was frivolous. Although I believe they would be wrong I felt there was nothing new under the sun when seeing Brokeback Mountain, why, because the human race has denied nature for centuries–what you saw was a beautifully shot film about 2 cowboys getting it on. What a big deal. How dreadful and dirty I hear some cry. Fuck-off! there are so many human beings that really do need to get a life…
scotshot
@Daggerman: Some would say frivolous, but tedious is more apt.
Glücklich
@russellhm:
I saw it Christmas night at the Embarcadero. Was looking for the least Christmas-y thing I could do.
Maude
Groundbreaking, and not just another movie about queers.
Why would a movie that cuts out actual acts that the book details get more attention than the book? Functional illiterates are walking among us.