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Brokeback Mountain

2005 · directed by Ang Lee · 134 min
26,788 feet · Prominence
120th of 24,106 films scored
The Rewatchables‘Brokeback Mountain’ With Bill Simmons and Wesley Morris →

How this film scores

Draw65

Lifetime worldwide gross $178m, re-releases included; about $301m in 2026 money.

Rank1,139 of 11,051In 200523 of 266

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise94

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics88 baseAwards98 signal → +6 lift

Oscars3 won Director, Adapted Screenplay, Original Score5 nominated Picture, Actor, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Cinematography
Golden Globes3 won Best Picture, Director, Screenplay2 nominated Lead acting, Supporting acting
BAFTAs4 won Film, Direction, Actor, Adapted Screenplay3 nominated Lead acting, Supporting acting, Craft and other
How Praise works

Critics set the score; a tiered award record, Picture and Directing carrying the most weight, claims half the headroom above it. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since.

Legacy78

Judged directly: Landmark queer film, endlessly referenced quote.

Verdict78 of 100IMDb7.7 from 414kWikipedia101k views a monthAge21 years

On the listsNational Film Registryevidence, not an input to the score
Scored beside it · 148 of 4,039 films judged

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 65 praise 94 legacy 78averages 79, placing it at26,788 ft
How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

Whose apex this is

▲ Jake Gyllenhaal

In these careers — elevation for this film

Heath Ledger20,600 ftJake Gyllenhaal20,600 ftMichelle Williams19,662 ftAnne Hathaway18,509 ftRandy Quaid17,949 ftLinda Cardellini17,894 ftAnna Faris17,805 ftDavid Harbour17,749 ftKate Mara17,659 ft