Brokeback Mountain

Our Heath…

Another year, another Golden Globes Awards night…our Heath was there in the running for Best Actor. He narrowly lost to Phillip Seymour Hoffman. It has been a busy few months for Our Heath. He has starred in a new Ang Lee film Brokeback Mountain which is sure to propel him in to the A-League category (not the soccer in Australia, but the A-League cohort of Hollywood Stars).

In the film Heath plays one of the male cowboy leads – Ledger’s character is gay. The film itself is allegedly a great piece of cinema…well written, brilliantly directed, strong cast and so on. Many reviews have said that the ‘gay issues’ the media is raving on about in the film are overrated, and that the viewer is more immersed in a wonderful love story.

What is of greater interest it seems in the media’s eyes, is how it has been received in American and now Australia.

Censorship, sexuality, and Hollywood have been thrown into fierce debate and discussion throughout the media. Ledger playing Heath Ledger, in the real world, away from the camera lens and on the red carpet, has taken on an intriguing relationship with the media and the public, juxtaposing their statements on his portrayal of the character he plays in the movie, with his own gender identity.

The next few blogs will follow the media coverage of Brokeback Mountain over the past few weeks, and the media’s portrayal of Ledger…this should give us an interesting insight into the way media discusses gender and sexuality...