strange radiation: the pool of radiance archive
Adventures with an unreliable narrator.
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Dec 10 05: stampede
Failed to see Brokeback Mountain this afternoon. The four of entered the hushed darkness of the theater 30 minutes before its scheduled beginning and were astonished to find it essentially full. A few empty single seats were scattered around the room, but beyond that only the frontmost row had any vacancies. My back and neck are in knots this weekend as it is, so front-row moviegoing was out of the question. When we got to the customer-service desk, we were told that all subsequent showings today were sold out, so we got a refund and came home.
On one hand: Fie. I really want to see this movie. On the other hand: Wow. I realize that yes, this is NYC; and yes, it’s only showing at three venues in the city right now, so demand for seats is being concentrated into fewer places; but still. A lot of people seem to think that a gay-cowboy-romance picture might be something worth seeing. Enough so, even, that the house was packed well before showtime. And not just a bunch of queers, either—I saw a whole lot of straight people there. Maybe this means that some day romances with people like me in ‘em won’t be major events created once a decade. Alongside my disappointment, I entertain a shy spark of hope.