BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN, the highly acclaimed novel western, has topped Florida's annual movie critics' poll, walking away with four awards including Best Film.

The movie also won Best Director (ANG LEE), Best Screenplay (LARRY McMURTRY and DIANA OSSANA), and Best Cinematography (RODRIGO PRIETO) in the Florida Film Critics Circle vote.

Brokeback Mountain is a touching love story between two Wyoming cowboys; set against an unusual background for a love story between two men, the movie is director's Ang Lee's adaptation of a story by E. Annie Proulx.

The screenplay was written by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana.

The movie stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger as young cowboys named Jack Twist and Ennis Del Mar. Each of them is hired to work cattle on the title location and they soon become good friends. But their initial platonic relationship transforms into something more. The two are eventually separated when their job comes to an end and they follow different life paths - one becomes a father of two and the other a business success. But they meet each other years later and both are affected profoundly by the rekindling of their old feelings for each other. They begin to consider what continuing their hidden relationship would cost them.

This year the movie also won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in September. This month it won the Boston critics Award for Best Movie, beating out Steven Spielberg's drama of realpolitik revenge ''Munich".

It has furthermore earned three top honors at the San Francisco Film Critics Circle awards: Best Picture award, Ang Lee was named Best Director and Heath Ledger - Best Actor. Critics say that it is the number one favorite for an Oscar for Best Picture this year.