Ending explained for Brokeback Mountain (2005): Why do Jack and Ennis break up?
Many people think Brokeback Mountain is a breakthrough movie, but reviews at the time were mixed. It caused a lot of trouble because of the way it showed homosexuality and how it questioned morality, religion and societal values.
This crazy and creatively complex film became popular because it showed another side to homophobic rants about being gay being “unnatural” at the time. It has been replaced by the unnatural character of the repression of sexuality.
The American neo-Western romantic drama “Brokeback Mountain” is directed by Ang Lee, who won an Oscar for his work as a director, producer and screenwriter.
The film stars Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway. It’s about two cowboys from the American West, Ennis Del Mar and Jack Twist, and their complicated 20-year love affair.
The two people become close, but in the end, cultural norms break their relationship. Everyone feels bad for them. This kind of “forbidden” love could exist between two women or between two people of different religions or cultures, which makes the film even more accessible to the public.
Brokeback Mountain (2005) The Ending Explained
Where did the idea for Brokeback Mountain come from?
The movie “Brokeback Mountain” is based on a short story of the same name. The story is very sad. Annie Proulx wrote this story, which was published in The New Yorker in 1997.
Anne Proulx talks about a time when she lived in northern Wyoming and saw that many people there were against homosexuals during an interview. While at a bar one night, she saw an old cowboy leaning against a wall. He watched the guys playing pool with an oddly sad, nostalgic look on his face.
The author wondered if he was gay, and she thought about what it would be like for an old cowboy to live in a place where being gay was looked down upon.
In another interview, Proulx said, “The novel wasn’t ‘inspired’. Instead, it was the result of years of unconscious observation and reflection, which led to the point where I could write it down.
Proulx went on to explain how remote parts of North America and local cultures influence her art and how she “monitors the historical disconnect between what people hoped for and who they thought they were and what happened to them.”
Brokeback Mountain (2005) The Ending Explained
How does the film show how the book was written?
At Brokeback Mountain, Proulx never ceases to oppose nature and culture. The characters’ strong feelings for each other are like nature in that they cannot be stopped, and the scenery shown as their love grows gives the setting symbolic meaning.
Brokeback Mountain’s landscape brings out the themes of desire and repression in a different way than it usually does in a Western.
Throughout the film, Jack Twist and Ennis Del Mar struggle to put their feelings for each other into words. Even when they do, they feel limited by society and culture and cannot say what they really want to say.
The setting of the story is important to the way it is told. It’s a key part of telling the Brokeback Mountain story when dialogue alone isn’t enough.
The film takes place in the rocky mountain to the west. The mountains contrast dramatically with the different hometowns of the two characters. They both come from physically and emotionally empty places, and Brokeback Mountain gives them a way out.
As society expects, Jack moves to Texas to live with his wealthy wife. Ennis, on the other hand, is bound by money and responsibilities.
From the beautiful view from the top of the mountain to the boring daily life society expects them to have, they go through a lot. In the film, the mountains are alive, wild and untamed, while their hometowns are boring, tame, sad and lonely. The mountain also serves as a tombstone for the relationship of men, which must now be put to rest.
Why does Jack break up with Ennis?
Ennis and Jack sometimes met when they were both fishing outside. But at some point, they decide they would be too different to be together. The decision was made because of what Ennis’ father did to a gay man when he caught him in the act.
That memory was a big part of what scared her son. Unfortunately, after having argued and then reconciled, the two people separate.
How does Ennis learn that Jack is dead?
A few years later, Ennis sent Jack a postcard, which was returned to him with the word “Deceased” written on it. He wastes no time and immediately calls Jack’s partner, Lureen. Thanks to Lureen, he discovers that Jack died in a car accident where a tire exploded in his face.
Ennis can’t help but think of a death that comes from his worst fear. He thinks Jack may have been killed in a violent act. Lureen also tells Jack that her husband wanted his ashes scattered all over Brokeback Mountain.
Ennis goes on a trip to do what Jack wants and talk to his parents. His father, however, says he would prefer the ashes to be scattered on the family estate.
How does Jack actually die?
Even though Lureen’s claims appear to be true, it’s possible there is another explanation. There are clues in the film as to how Jack could have been injured and died. In an earlier scene, Jack is seen making moves on a guy inside the bar. Two angry men stare at Jack as the cowboy turns to speak to his friend in the corner. You can see how quickly things could have gone wrong for him and killed him.
Jack often tried to get what he wanted by hanging out with men, so it’s likely he was killed in the process. Also, the movie does nothing to make Ennis feel better. It is therefore possible that this situation actually occurred.
In an interview, Anne Hathaway said she didn’t know what happened with Jack. She goes on to say that the scene in the movie where Lureen calls Ennis was shot twice. Lureen is seen telling Ennis how she found out her partner was gay and was killed because of his sexuality. The other was when Lureen told Ennis that Jack died because a tire blew up in his face.
In the end, the two sockets were put together instead of each being used alone. Anne doesn’t seem to understand why Ang Lee told them to do this.
Does Lureen know if Jack is gay or straight?
Lureen could have discovered her partner’s sexual preferences over time, but nothing like that is displayed on the screen. She tells Ennis in the film that his partner wanted his ashes scattered all over Brokeback Mountain.
She might have thought that Jack would have lived on the mountain when he was young. In reality, however, it gives Jack and Ennis a safe place to meet.
In parts of the film, Lureen tells other women that her partner didn’t want to “dance” with her. In this case, the dance could have been linked to close relationships. She goes on to say that she told her husband he couldn’t “drink”. She implied that she might have asked her husband to stop having homosexual relations.
Jack “drank” a lot, but, as she says, he didn’t pay attention to her. Her eyes appear to be watering as she speaks, which could mean she knew Jack used to hang out with Ennis or that she was sad for her late husband.
