Movie Title: The Brutalist

This dramatic film about post-WWII is now playing in select theaters and on Fandango at Home.

RATING: R

LENGTH: 3 hours 34 minutes (This is the 5th longest movie nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture)

Movie Review Mom GRADE: A-

IN A NUTSHELL:

This dramatic movie was written and directed by actor Brady Corbet, along with writing help from his partner, Mona Fastvold. The film was loosely inspired by the 1943 novel The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand, which is about architect Howard Roark’s story. Two real-life Hungarian architects of the same period provided insights into creating Adrien Brody’s character.

The story is about a visionary architect and his wife who flee post-war Europe in 1947 to rebuild their legacy and witness the birth of modern United States. Their lives are changed forever when by a mysterious, wealthy client.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

We see some “action” and nudity in a brothel. Later, we see full frontal nudity and full-on orgies.
Talk of the Holocaust and WWII
There are subtitles to read when Hungarian and Italian are spoken.
We hear some racial slurs.
A clothed rape
We see heroin usage.

THEMES:

The immigration experience
Post World War II
Architecture
Mentorship
Hard work
Rich vs. poor
Addiction
Ambition
Greed
Legacy
The Displaced Persons Act
Being on the “outside” as a foreigner

THINGS I LIKED:

The cast is fantastic and includes 1 Oscar winner: Adrien Brody, and 2 Oscar nominees: Felicity Jones and Guy Pearce. Already, Adrien Brody has been nominated for another Academy Award for Best Actor his role in this movie, after winning a Golden Globe just last month. He’s, obviously, fantastic in this.
When the movie was first announced during the pandemic, the cast was going to be quite different. Half of the roles were recast in 2023.
Sadly, we don’t even see Felicity Jones until almost 1 1/2 hours into the film. Her sex scene with Adrien Brody was shot entirely with body doubles.
We get to learn a little bit about US history with old footage.
I liked the look of the opening credits. Different. Different is good.
Gorgeous musical score.
Lovely cinematography.
The movie was shot in 34 days in Budapest, Hungary and in Carrara, Italy.
In theaters, the film has a 15-minute intermission, something that hasn’t been seen in a film since The Hateful Eight in 2015. When watching from home, the intermission is only 1 minute long.
Another thing that makes this film unique is that it was shot in something called VistaVision, a widescreen format that hasn’t been done in 61 years since the 1963 film Six Loves. When shown in theaters, 70mmm film prints were used.
In the title, “brutalist” refers to the famous architectural style which is charactrized by its use of raw, exposed concrete, large, blocky forms, and a minimalist aesthetic, often appearing rough and unadorned. It also describes some of the people in the film in their manner of treating others.
We see symbolism in Erzsebet Toth’s broken legs how all of the characters are also broken emotionally. The symbolism in the gigantic building Laszlo was trying to construct also imitates the great American Dream that is imperfect and often crushing.
It’s fascinating to learn more about the architecture in the epilogue and what the symbolic structures meant to Laszlo Toth.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the director explained that he loves shaking things up to keep the audience searching for the themes and big message of the film until the end. Some viewers will think the ending is brilliant, while others will complain it’s confusing, odd, and has a completely different tone from the rest of the film. I actually really liked it.
When the writer is also the director of a film, the result is often an overly-long, overstuffed indulgence. I saw quite a few scenes that could have easily been cut without sacrificing anything in the story.
It’s hard to understand everything that’s spoken because so many conversations are whispered or stated in hushed tones.

FUNNY LINES:

“Can’t you say anything kind to me?” – Erzsebet Toth (Felicity Jones) “I love you, you cow.” – Laszlo Toth (Adrien Brody)

INTERESTING LINES:

“Nothing is of its own explanation.” – Laszlo Toth (Adrien Brody)
“Dreams slip away.” – Harrison Lee Van Buren Sr. (Guy Pearce)
“Laszlo, we tolerate you.” – Harry Lee (Joe Alwyn)
“To lose one’s birth mother is to lose the very foundation on which we stand.” – (Felicity Jones)
“What have you done to yourself? It’s a shame seeing how your people treat themselves. If you resent your persecution, why then do you make yourself such an easy target?” – Harrison Lee Van Buren Sr. (Guy Pearce)
“You have so much potential but you squander it.” – Harrison Lee Van Buren Sr. (Guy Pearce)
“My uncle is, above all, a principled artist. His lifelong ambition was not only to define an epoch, but to transcend all time.” – niece (Ariane Labed)