BREAKING DOWN BROKEBACK

Though the Oscar buzz for "Brokeback Mountain" may have fizzled, IU professors and researchers have weighed in about the meaning of the movie in light of some critics' eagerness to write it off as just a "gay cowboy" movie.\nThough the film starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger had been slated by many as the "it" movie of this year's awards season, it went into the Oscars as a favorite for best picture, but lost that as well as best actor and best supporting actor. It did come away with three Oscars - best director, best adapted screenplay and best score. \nStill, the controversy surrounding the film has engulfed the nation, and locally the campus. \nColin Johnson, assistant professor of gender studies and adjunct assistant professor in American studies and history, has researched sexuality in rural areas.\n"There is a rush to characterize the film as a gay cowboy (movie)," he said.\nJohnson said the film focuses on the idea of "rural alienation," meaning gay men who live in rural areas are outcast for their sexuality. The misconception is that gay men move to a large city with a more concentrated population of gay men and feel more accepted in their surroundings, Johnson said. \nGregory Hughes, a sociology graduate student, has done research that breaks down this myth.\n"The men that I study have a very regulated view of urban gay men and don't want to be associated with it," Hughes said.\nHughes said the movie has meaning that isn't entirely focused on the idea that the two main characters are gay men.\n"I don't really think about it as (a gay cowboy movie), but part of that is because I study this stuff and am much more familiar with it," Hughes said. "But for most people, they see two men in a sexual relationship and that automatically means they are 'gay.' So the reactions that I see often seem to be related to what people think about gay people, or just homosexuality."\nHughes said the audience is likely to judge the movie based on its preconceived opinions.\n"If a person is really for equal rights or gay rights, they might be really happy to see such a film which is addressing homosexuality in a context in which it is not often seen or bringing awareness of the subject into a new place," Hughes said. "On the other end, if a person has a problem with homosexuality, sees it as inherently wrong, they might see this as another ploy of liberals in Hollywood to push their agenda and as them corrupting certain traditional values."\nOne category "Brokeback Mountain" was nominated for but lost to "Memoirs of a Geisha" was Best Achievement in Cinematography, an accomplishment Colin Johnson said plays an important role in the film.\n"Ang Lee clearly chose to frame his shots in a way that would establish a stark contrast between the openness of the rural landscape and the cramped claustrophobic feeling of interior spaces," Johnson said. "Part of the film's intention is to mark the open landscape as a site of erotic and emotional possibility for Ennis and Jack. By contrast, domestic and domesticated interior spaces represent a kind of crowded zone of convention." \nAlthough the movie has received positive reviews, not even Oscar nominations have captured all audiences. Senior Aaron O'Brien said he wasn't very impressed with the movie, commenting that the "execution was good," but the script was "a little weak." \n"I didn't feel the affection of the two characters," O'Brien said. "The core relationship of the characters was never fully developed and hurt the impact of the film."\nSarah Sinwell, an associate instructor who teaches a gender studies course, said "housewives" are one of the most common audiences who appreciate the film. Sinwell's class has discussed elements of "Brokeback Mountain" in the context of "queer theory, queer identities," among other areas.\n"The love story really appeals to people," Sinwell said. "Tragedy is what's Oscar-worthy (to the academy)."\nFor sophomore Brett Hartley, the appeal of the movie lies in its casting of popular actors.\n"This is the first-ever real love story of gays that has been made," Hartley said. "It could open the floodgates for a more progressive movie industry"