I just sat down and read "Brokeback Mountain", y'know the short story the movie was based on... the reason it won adapted screenplay instead of regular screenplay. Yes, (moving) pictures can be fun, but one really ought to look at the nice words... especially in this case.
It's a beautiful story, and it has that subtle execution and understanding of the human animal (as much as I hate that stupid term) that I always fall for in good literature. I, for one, don't need another overdone love story with sweeping music and slow motion bullshit field of daisies "I'll never let go, Jack, I'll never let go" crap that people seem to eat up so much. Basically, it's got everything that made the movie awesome, except it's made out of words, and the perfect ones at that.
Despite all the similarity, though, it sits a lot differently in my head than the movie did, partially because of the pacing and partially because books are just more intimate by their nature. It took me less than an hour to read, and most of that time was spent reading the last sentence over and over again no less than twenty-five times with tears in my eyes only to be finally snapped out of it by my cell phone going all "BUZZ BUZZ! COMMUNICATION! DAILY LIFE! SOCIAL, STRESS, AAAAAAAAH!" I hate my cell phone ring.
So go read it because I'm not saying any more. The way in which this book resonated with me is really personal, and like all things personal in my life, I can't really express it because it's too abstract. So I'm gonna go back and read the ending a second time so I can sit in it longer. And you're going to go to your local library (or just buy the damn thing for $10), and you're going to read it, and you're going to think it's special too. Now go.... unless you're my friend Billy who's my houseguest for the week, in which case it's sitting on my coffee table right in front of you, so read it (it's short) and remember not to go into the secret room with the cat box, and it's probably not a good idea to open the fridge either.
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