****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
Yes, this is a film about gay bashing and homophobia, but it could be a film about any hate crime, and unfortunately we are not at a loss for those these days... Brokeback Mountain left me cold, due to the lack of a backstory, its origin as a flimsy short story, its superficial script and the total lack of a sense of outrage. If you feel the same way, here is the antidote. First, I disagree with the reviewer who called this film "pat." Bigots and bullies are not complex creatures, they are simply sociopaths with rotten childhoods (and often psychopaths). Why is it that those who most loudly invoke Jesus (or other religious icon), and take the Bible (or other scripture) most literally, embody nothing of the teachings of their religious leader? Remember what Jesus said: "Even as you do it to the least of these, you do it unto me." So when a person commits gay bashing, rape, bullying, genocide, an act of racism or child abuse (or any other violent crime), it is as though it was done to Christ. But bigots don't see it that way... A gay couple - a veterinarian and an accountant - is celebrating six years of being together in a happy relationship filled with love and nurturing. They do not hate, are polite, accomplished, giving, show respect for others, and are optimists. Enter an angry, troubled fundamentalist bigot who wastes no time condemning them and telling them they are "going to hell." Shortly thereafter the relationship is shattered when the blond vet is brutally beaten with a baseball bat while walking his dog at night, and soon bleeds to death in his hospital bed. The bulk of the film centers around how the parents, in-laws and friends of the victim deal with finding and punishing the the perpetrator of this grisly, cowardly act.You are continually kept guessing. Everything in this film is excellent, from script and acting to photography and music. Whatever you think of gays or other minorities, this film seeks to ensure that you are never indifferent again to the outrage of violence. Regrettably there are some people who will not care about violence to others, because for them everything in life "is only about me."Remember the story of the man who saw his friends and neighbors systematically taken away. He did nothing because he didn't want to get involved. But then he adds... "And then they came for me." Look around you and do something.
