#Sam and frodo gay brokeback mountain movie#

Typically, American movies tend to revolve around some kind of romantic relationship, even if the film itself doesn't necessarily fit into the romance genre. Why should I feel that way? Could it be that, after all I've been through, deep down inside I'm really just a closet homophobe? Eventually I discovered that the reason I like the non-sexual/non-romantic relationship between Andy and Red is because I find it to be a refreshing change. I've always liked the fact that Andy and Red share a non-sexual/non-romantic love, but I used to feel guilty about doing so. People need to make emotional connections with other people, regardless of whether or not they make physical connections. Apart from their daily occupations (Red with the black market and Andy with the library and escape plans) the only thing either of them has is each other, so they become each other's family. Neither Red nor Andy make mention of any living family 1 on the outside. I guess the best way to describe it, though still woefully inadequate, is to describe it as 'brotherly love'.

Spanish has a lovely word for it- simpatico-but for those of us who don't speak Spanish the connotation may not come across. English-at least American English-doesn't really have a strong enough word to describe that kind of deep bond between two people. And yet, I don't think describing their relationship as 'friendship' is adequate (particularly if one insists on tacking on the hideous modifier 'just'). Now, before I go any further, I want to state unequivocally that I am NOT suggesting that the relationship between Andy and Red in TSR (or RHS, for that matter) is in any way romantic or sexual, and I would challenge the interpretation of anyone who did say so. Part of what makes both BBM and TSR special and significant is that they are stories that depict men expressing emotions in a way that is outside what is usually considered socially acceptable behavior, and even the emotions themselves may be outside the acceptable norm. TSR = The Shawshank Redemption film, written and directed by Frank DarabontīMS = 'Brokeback Mountain', short story by Annie ProulxīBM = Brokeback Mountain film, directed by Ang Lee written by Larry McMurty and Diana Ossana RHS = 'Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption', short novel by Stephen King As I continued to ponder it, I found that there are actually quite a few similarities between Brokeback Mountain and Shawshank Redemption in terms of theme and structure.īefore I go any further, here's a key for the abbreviations I will be using in this essay: However, after seeing Brokeback Mountain and obsessing over it for several months, I finally asked myself, 'Is it possible that Brokeback Mountain actually surpasses Shawshank Redemption as the best movie?' Having been preoccupied with the film night and day for months, I decided this was a valid question. Of course having seen the best didn't make stop seeing other movies because even if they weren't as good, they could still be entertaining, especially since the movies I tend to enjoy aren't necessarily the movies of the highest filmic quality, and vice versa.

#Sam and frodo gay brokeback mountain movie#

Interestingly, I took it for granted that I would never see a movie better than Shawshank Redemption. If you'd asked me a year ago what I thought the greatest film ever made was, I would not have hesitated to answer The Shawshank Redemption (unless I was too preoccupied with school/work to pay attention to your question).