Saw Brokeback Mountain tonight. I knew it was going to be underwhelming after all the hype, and it was, a little. It’s a great movie though - very beautiful and well done - and I enjoyed it. Minus the hype, I’m sure I would’ve loved it, but I got too excited and read too many glowing reviews, and therefore expected a revelation when in fact it was just very good. Can’t blame the movie for that.

I still much prefer The Ice Storm to anything else Ang Lee has done. I don’t think it’s possible for him to top that.

If you haven’t seen The Ice Storm…

American Beauty (which I love, too) is really just a modern, more accessible retelling of The Ice Storm. It’s a movie that received nowhere near the critical or popular acclaim it should have. That’s because it’s way too cold and detached for many people - which is the point, really. The key phrase here is that American Beauty is more accessible to (i.e. dumbed down for) the typical American audience.

Regardless, Ang Lee and cast (Kevin Kline, Joan Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Christina Ricci, Elijah Wood, Tobey Maguire, Katie Holmes) made what is probably the finest modern example of a technically perfect film with The Ice Storm. Gorgeous camerawork, perfect music, career performances from many of the actors - the women especially - and some of my favorite lines of dialogue in any movie. The movie is a mood in itself. I feel chilly even thinking about it.

Just Netflix it so we can discuss it later. Alright, class?