brokeback mountain

The movie Brokeback Mountain I thought was very well directed. The characters who played Ennis and jack fit their roles very well and they played the gay cowboy roles to a tee even though in real life they are heterosexual. I have a lot of respect for the message that this movie was trying to portray, and I understand why it won so many awards. It shows how society can be so judgmental and narrow minded that these two men have to hide their love for each other in order to avoid persecution. It views how ignorant people can be and the extent of hate that goes along with it. For example the death of Jack which the only provocation was that he was gay. On the other hand, the movie wasn’t the kind of movie I enjoy watching. The whole gay cowboy thing was a topic I could live my life without seeing, and watching it in a classroom setting just made it awkward for me. I also thought that Heath Ledger’s characters accent changed throughout the story a little. At times it seemed to be very southern when other times maybe more Midwestern. The ending was unusual; I wasn’t sure why they didn’t make Jack’s death more of a point of emphasis. It seemed that Ennis knew that he didn’t die in the way he was told and he just accepted it.

brokeback mountain

In response to the short story “Brokeback Mountain” ill start by saying what it is I liked about it. I thought it was a very well written short story and that the overall theme was conveyed an important message. It took a subject that was very taboo especially for cowboys in the mountains and brought it to the forefront. Many people would rather go on with their lives without seeing or hearing about a story about gay cowboys, but the fact that it was written and made into a movie shows I think was necessary for American culture. On the other hand, I wasn’t so thrilled about reading this story. I have not seen the movie but understand the gist of it. I knew it was about gay cowboys and that’s all I really needed to know in order to abstain from watching it. I am not homophobic in the least bit and that people should love whomever they wish, but I am not one to look closely into gay culture. The sex scenes in the book did make me a little uncomfortable which I guess could be contributed to me being a bit naïve. Out of sight out of mind is my outlook on gay culture but I understand that being in college I need to grow and expand my realm of thinking. Reading and watching this movie will give me a better sense of what people different then me go through and maybe make me a more understanding person.

short cuts

After watching the movie Short Cuts, I would have to say I didn’t expect that it would be so vulgar. The dialogue used caught me way off guard and made me a little uncomfortable watching it being in a classroom setting. The lady whose job was to talk erotically on the phone definitely got my attention. Also, the nudity, suicide and death made it not only awkward to watch but a little depressing. It is not something you want to watch at eight o’clock in the morning. Also the betrayal, cheating, and just sleazy behavior displayed by the characters also rubbed me the wrong way. I did however like the way the director combined numerous short stories into one film. Everyone could in some way relate to one or more of the characters which makes it more interesting to watch. It allows the audience to be see characters from all walks of life go through their daily struggles and how they resolve them. It may not be pretty but it is realistic. People cheat, steal, and kill everyday so it only makes sense to show it on the screen.

a small good thing

A Small, Good Thing, was a short story I enjoyed reading. It was easy to read, the plot was easy to follow, and I thought it presented many important themes. I liked the role of the baker and the effect he had on the story. As a reader you almost felt as bad for him as you did for the mother and father. He was just a lonely man who was trying to run a business to keep ends meet. He got caught up in a bad situation where he had no idea of what happened. The negro family on the other hand kind of confused me. I am not sure whether the author wanted the reader to feel worse for the negro family or Scotty’s parents. I took it as you should always be thankful because someone, somewhere, is probably worse off. I also liked it because the emotion showed by the parents of Scotty were fairly accurate. I think if I was in the same situation I would have acted in a similar fashion. This allows the story to be more personable. I also would react the same way when the baker called. Even though you know there is no way he could have known about the death you feel helpless and just want to put the blame on someone else. The ending even though the boy died was happy in the sense that the baker helped out the family. It displayed the importance of human interaction and people helping people.

Tomorrow

Tomorrow was one of those movies that just seemed awkward and boring to me. Not taking anything away from Duvall’s acting but it just didn’t interest me. I think his portrayal of Fentre took a lot of skill and talent and he really fit the part. I prefer movies that have excitement and action and this film had little to none. The interaction between Fentre and the women just seemed to drag on throughout the movie. Also, the movie was very predictable. Even without reading it I could easily guess that she was going to eventually pass away and couldn’t help but feel sorry for Fentre. He had the biggest heart and no matter what he did things were going to end badly for him. The movie just had an overall depressing tone. At the end when his wife’s brothers took the boy away you would like to think the Fentry would have fought harder to keep something he cared about so much. The boy was the one thing in his life that kept him happy and to let him go so easily just didn’t seem right. This just shows that nice guys finish last and that the world is sometimes not fair. I realize that even though this wasn’t my favorite movie I do think the director was fairly accurate with the time period and presented many important themes. Not all movies should have happy endings and this film did for the most part fit with Faulkner’s writing.

The sky is grey

After finishing reading The Sky is Grey I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the short story. I usually do not like reading text that has a lot of slang or that takes place back in time because it takes me longer to read and comprehend. This was different. I quickly picked up that this would be focused on racial equality when they had to sit in the colored section of the bus. I liked that it didn’t focus primarily on the anger of how blacks viewed whites but insight on how to change it. The point in the story when the boy was talking to the preacher really made me think. The boy way of thinking in my opinion was commendable and rather thought provoking. His reference to the wind being pink made a lot of sense to me. I think if people have a problem with different races they should think about what exactly the color black or white really means. Going back the mom and the boy, the way they acted at the old ladies store was to be admired. Although her boy was starving and cold, she still didn’t want their charity unless they earned it. It made me think of how lucky to have the possessions I do and not to envy others as much.

tomorrow

After reading the short story Tomorrow by William Faulkner I was confused to say the least. The story starts out in a courtroom where they mention a plethora of different characters and gave little back story on any of them. I had a hard time keeping the characters straight and after trying to re-read the pages got very frustrated. Not to mention when I watched the movie today there was not a courtroom seen at all. Unlike the movie, they gave a description of Fentry and what kind of people he came from. It told us the he knew very little except how to work hard. Basically they just took advantage of his work ethic. I think the conditions to which he was living were very poor but Fentry didn’t seem to mind at all. The way he treated the pregnant lady was to be admired as well. It shows the he did need companionship and maybe her passing out near him was some kind of sign. The story all in all had me confused to how all these characters connect to each other. I would also say I was not a big fan of the story or the movie due to its boring and almost awkward dialogue.