Brokeback Mountain

Built on an auspicious literary foundation—Pulitzer Prize–winner Annie Proulx’s short story adapted into a Western-styled screenplay by Pulitzer Prize–winner Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana—Brokeback Mountain follows two hired hands (Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger) whose summer tending sheep in isolated Wyoming foothills sparks a physical relationship that pervades the rest of their lives. Lee’s provocative examination of sexuality created a monumental challenge to social norms and became his most talked-about and decorated film, winning Venice’s Golden Lion, four Golden Globes, and three Oscars, including Director, Adapted Screenplay, and Original Score.