slightly obsessed.

if you've been around me lately, you know that i'm slightly obsessed with the release of 'brokeback mountain'. okay, maybe i don't blog about it as much as this guy, but i too have been following the story of this movie for a very long time. (by the way, he has a great summary here -- thanks andy).

if you look at the summary, you'll see that there's a lot of fuss going on about this movie. so what is the big deal? i've always been a movie lover ever since i've been very young. i think i kind of got it from my dad, who loves watching all types of movies, even if they aren't very good. i don't have a digital box like my dad, and i'll be honest, i'm looking forward to christmas because along with getting some cool gifts (hopefully), it'll also mean that i get to watch a whole bunch of movies while i loaf on my dad's couch.

anyways, as i get older, the typical hollywood blockbuster doesn't do it for me. actually let me correct myself. i guess what it is that when i do find the time to go and see a movie nowadays, i look for something to speak to me, i look to totally escape, or find characters that i can identify with. now with brokeback, it does not mean that i want to be a cowboy in living wyoming. while i appreciate the diversity of the portrayals of what it means to be a gay man (the birdcage, the crying game, my own private idaho), i think most mainstream movies outside of the gay and lesbian film festival circuit have never really tackled the themes of romantic (gay) love. the reviews are generally positive, but quite honestly, i don't care. i just think that it is important for movies like this to be made. i think it is a pretty accurate assessment, but i think there are a lot of people like me that are hungry for images and stories that reflect themselves. not all of us want to be drag queens. not all of us are hairdressers. not all of us are cowboys. but i think most all of us, in some form of another, want love, and i think this is what this movie is about.

anyways, it opens here in vancouver at the park on friday. if it is as any good as ang lee's the wedding banquet, i'll be happy.