The Brutalist – ★★★★☆
dir. by Brady Corbet
World Premiere @ Venice International Film Festival: September 1st 2024
U.S theatrical release: January 24th 2025
I won’t beat around the bush – this review has me a little nervous…because this one’s going out to the public. Now, this anxious feeling of mine assumes that people are going to care in the first place – but still, this is going to be something that people I see every day are going to be able to read. Obviously, I won’t let that idea affect how I write about the movie…But I’m still allowed to be at least a teensy bit nervous. Then again, though – just judging by the people I’ve talked to here on campus about this film, this sprawling 3.5-hour post-WWII epic about immigration and the American Dream doesn’t seem like something that’s taking the casual crowds by storm.
So, if you want to, think of this as the essay form of one of those “I watched this movie, so you don’t have to” videos on YouTube. But in The Brutalist’s case, I wish that more people would have seen it. I drove an hour up to Burlington with my roommate and another friend just so we could see it in theaters, and we were not disappointed. As I said earlier, The Brutalist is a heartfelt tale that both analyzes the post-WWII American Dream and takes a sledgehammer to it simultaneously. While this kind of story has been told about a million times, I think that what The Brutalist brings to the table is the sheer unapologetic amount of space that only a 215-minute film can provide.
And in that space, The Brutalist captures various themes of artistry, immigration, capitalism, and the Holocaust. The film also explores artists’ struggles when trying to create art while balancing the demands of money and power. But speaking of certain themes, the only real setback that I feel this movie has lies in that same second half and how it felt a bit more unfocused and overloaded with messaging. While the first part of the film largely deals with the rise of László’s American Dream, the second half deals with the shattering of said dream…it feeds it through an overwhelming amount of plot points and elements – to get to that “immigrants have it tough” message. And although everything that I just mentioned is decently strung supporting evidence for that overarching message, I can’t help but feel it rings a little bit hollow just because of how all over the place it is.
But even though I’m disappointed that The Brutalist fell victim to one of the most cliche “American epic” cliches (overcrowded story in the back) half as well as having a very generic “being a non-American in America is tough” story…I still found the film pretty incredible. Where it falters in narrative balancing and originality, it makes up for it in lighting, cinematography, and every other technical aspect. Even if I’m not exactly gunning for The Brutalist to win Best Picture – you best believe I’m waiting for it to get either Best Cinematography or Best Editing (or both). And let’s not forget about the performances either because everyone here rocks. Specifically, Adrian Brody is an absolute beast in the leading role here. I guess he knows a thing or two about giving Oscar-worthy performances as a Jewish Holocaust survivor…
I know that self-promotion is a bit of a taboo in journalism, but I think it’s fair to say that my silly little film column exists outside the realm of the usual Guidon stuff. So, with that being said, it’s shameless plug time – if you wanna read a way longer and way more in-depth version of this review, hit this link.
