"Brokeback Mountain" Pulled in Utah (choices, choice, hell)

[Green Gaia]

Originally Posted by Fluffy

Does anyone think he should have been forced legally to show the film and if so how should it be enforced?

No, of course not.

But whatever his reasons for pulling the film (fear, he finds it objectionable, etc.), this is another incident that shows the bias against BLGT people in general in our society.

Imagine if a movie theater pulled a movie because it contained an interracial relationship. Would people be OK with that happening?

To me, film is art. Some of it I'm going to like, and others I won't, and I believe than none of it should be censored from the adult public. We have a choice to see it or not, no one is making us view any film.

[Fluffy]

Wow nobody at all thought the movie should not have been made! That's unusual, normally we have at least one or two votes for the erm "anti-gay" choice.

[Ðanisty]

Originally Posted by jonny

Heath Ledger: "Personally, I don't think the movie is (controversial) but I think maybe the Mormons in Utah do. I think it's hilarious and very immature of a society."

Since when did Larry Miller become spokesman for the Mormon church? I love it when people show their ignorance as they try and criticize someone else's ignorance. I'll probably think twice before seeing another movie with this guy in it, which is sad because I usually like them.

Ledger didn't say that Miller was speaking for the Mormon church. According to your quote, he didn't say anything about Miller at all. He just said that maybe Mormons think the movie is controversial. I don't see how that's ignorance at all. Obviously he was right about a lot of Mormons and he never said he knew for certain anyway. He said maybe. I think you're reading a bit into his comments, unless there's more that you can post that makes it clearer. Going by the quote you provided though, I don't think Ledger was trying to equate Miller as the spokesman for the Mormon church.

[MidnightBlue]

I voted "It's OK," but that needs some qualification. I do think it's okay for theater owners to show whatever they want. If I owned a theater, I certainly wouldn't be showing The Passion of the Christ, and I wouldn't want anybody telling me I was obligated to show it.

On the other hand, I do think Larry Miller sounds like a jackass.

[Sunstone]

It just seems strange to me that in this day and age there would still be a controversy over a well made film about two men in love. But I live in my own little bubble, I suppose.

[jonny]

Originally Posted by Ðanisty

Ledger didn't say that Miller was speaking for the Mormon church. According to your quote, he didn't say anything about Miller at all. He just said that maybe Mormons think the movie is controversial. I don't see how that's ignorance at all. Obviously he was right about a lot of Mormons and he never said he knew for certain anyway. He said maybe. I think you're reading a bit into his comments, unless there's more that you can post that makes it clearer. Going by the quote you provided though, I don't think Ledger was trying to equate Miller as the spokesman for the Mormon church.

The quote was in reference to the movie being pulled. His response to the movie being pulled as that the Mormons think that the movie is controversial. The accurate response would be that Larry Miller thinks that the movie is controversial. The feelings of "Larry Miller" may be similar to many Mormons, but they do not represent the feelings of "the Mormons in Utah." Most of "the Mormons in Utah" don't watch Rated-R movies anyway.

Here's the quote from the article Heath Ledger angry at ban

Ledger said he was not surprised a Utah cinema had banned Brokeback Mountain, which depicts a lifelong love affair between two Montana cowboys. "I heard a while ago that West Virginia was going to ban it. But that's a state that was lynching people only 25 years ago, so that's to be expected," Ledger said.

"Personally, I don't think the movie is (controversial) but I think maybe the Mormons in Utah do. I think it's hilarious and very immature of a society.

[Quoth The Raven]

Originally Posted by jonny

The quote was in reference to the movie being pulled. His response to the movie being pulled as that the Mormons think that the movie is controversial. The accurate response would be that Larry Miller thinks that the movie is controversial. The feelings of "Larry Miller" may be similar to many Mormons, but they do not represent the feelings of "the Mormons in Utah." Most of "the Mormons in Utah" don't watch Rated-R movies anyway.

Here's the quote from the article Heath Ledger angry at ban

Yes...he sounded positively incensed.
Bearing in mind you don't know what the question was that prompted the response regarding what the Mormons in Utah maybe found controversial, I don't think you can really make a judgement on what level of ignorance he was expressing with his comment.
If someone ran up to you on a red carpet at a premiere, shoved a tape recorder in your face and said,'How do you feel about cinemas in Utah pulling the film?', how would you respond? Judging by the fact that he said 'Well, I'd heard that West Virginia was going to ban it', you don't even know that this wasn't the first time he'd heard about the whole SLC cinema thing, and you certainly don't know how it was represented to him by the people asking the questions.
Just because 'most of the Mormons in Utah' don't watch R rated movies, doesn't mean that they have no opinions on them.

[jonny]

Originally Posted by lady_lazarus

Yes...he sounded positively incensed.
Bearing in mind you don't know what the question was that prompted the response regarding what the Mormons in Utah maybe found controversial, I don't think you can really make a judgement on what level of ignorance he was expressing with his comment.
If someone ran up to you on a red carpet at a premiere, shoved a tape recorder in your face and said,'How do you feel about cinemas in Utah pulling the film?', how would you respond? Judging by the fact that he said 'Well, I'd heard that West Virginia was going to ban it', you don't even know that this wasn't the first time he'd heard about the whole SLC cinema thing, and you certainly don't know how it was represented to him by the people asking the questions.

I didn't realize I was offending so many Heath Ledger fans. I apoligize.

You're right. Maybe I should be critisizing the Australian media for its reporting, but I call it like I see it. Most of "the Mormons in Utah" that I've talked to did NOT agree with what Larry Miller did, and those who have heard the quote from the all-mightly Ledger have not responded favorably towards him either. If Larry Miller pulled the film because he was worried about what the Mormons would think he's a M-O-R-O-N. Like I said earlier, most members of the LDS church won't watch or rarely watch rated-R movies anyway. It has nothing to do with the homosexuality in the movie.

*If* he pulled it because of what the Mormons would think, he is not only a Moron, but he is also a hypocrite. He can't pretend to run his businesses like a good Mormon and then serve alcohol at the Utah Jazz and Baseball games, allow his places to be open on Sunday, show other rated-R movies, etc. I'm still waiting for his comments on the PR-mess that he's created for my final judgment, but I have a feeling that he's going to be silent on this one and hope it blows over.

There are plenty of theaters in Utah that Larry Miller doesn't own. I betcha that if people want to see this movie, they'll see it anyway, regardless of whether or not one of many theater chains is showing it.

Personally, I think that the studios were waiting for something like this to happen to get some more publicity for the film out. Larry Miller fell into their trap. He deserves any boycotts of his businesses that he gets.

As for me, stuff like this makes me embarassed to be one of "the Mormons in Utah."