The Brutalist
Brady Corbet is aiming for a type of cinematic experience we don’t often see in American cinema with “The Brutalist.” Nominally, we will recognize a lot of the parts within it, but it’s the way they are packaged in an epic, 215-minute drama (with intermission) that feels distinctive. I think the last film this could be compared to was “There Will Be Blood.” This film cannot maintain the same intense, head-long thematic momentum that film did, but for much of its running time, I was unable to look away.
We begin with a journey across the sea. And then, they see the Statue of Liberty, and rejoice. Among the passengers is László Tóth (Adrien Brody), a Hungarian Jewish architect who survived the Holocaust, but was separated from his wife (Erzsébet, played by Felicity Jones) and their niece (Zsófia, played by Raffey Cassidy). Now, he comes to America, in hopes of making a living working with his cousin, Attila (Alessandro Nivola) and his wife, Audrey (Emma Laird), at their furniture store in Philadelphia, and trying to get Erzsébet and Zsófia. After a falling out with Attila, László must fend for himself, but a chance encounter with the wealthy Harrison Lee Van Buren Sr. (Guy Pearce) gives him an unprecedented opportunity.
“The Brutalist” is, first and foremost, a story of an immigrant coming to America, in hopes of finding the “American Dream” for himself and his family. After the brutal persecution and antisemitism of the Holocaust, anything has to be better than that, correct? The central focus of much of the screenplay by Corbet and his wife, Mona Fastvold, is that even in a country where all immigrants are theoretically welcomed (by that poem on the Statue of Liberty), the reality is that bigotry is everywhere, and can even exist within perceived friends and loved ones. After the volatile reaction to their remodeling of Van Buren Sr.’s study- approved by his son (Joe Alwyn) without his father’s blessing- Attila and Audrey, rather than stand up for László, hang him out to dry (in part because Audrey, a Catholic girl who’s converted Attila, accuses him- falsely- of making a move on her). After that, László and a friend he met in line at the soup kitchen one day, Gordon (Isaach De Bankolé), find work and shelter whenever they can. When Van Buren reenters László’s life, appreciates not just the study he made, but also the work he did back in Europe, what the millionaire has to offer is intriguing- an all-in-one community center (complete with a library, a theater, a gymnasium, and a chapel for worship), in honor of Van Buren’s late mother. In return, Van Buren’s lawyer will work to expedite László’s family’s immigration to America.
When we consider the history of America, and our welcoming of immigrants, we’ve always held a fundamental, contradictory truth at our core- we want you to come, but you need to assimilate to our way of life. Freedom is something for the privileged (ie, white, Christian) population; everyone else has to work for it, and accept discrimination as a way of life. This is the idea “The Brutalist” explores at its center; while Van Buren is willing to aid László at times- giving him crumbs- he’s not above tossing him aside when it’s inconvenient. The community center he’s commissioned László to create is audacious in scope, and ludicrous in design, but László throws himself into the challenge, and what it could be. His design is modern and creative, but it also doesn’t strike us as practical and inviting. He’s trying to work within the confines he’s given when it comes to budget and materials, but when Van Buren brings in an architect he’s worked with before (played by Michael Epp), László is often set aside. And when a train accident causes a delay in materials being delivered, Van Buren scraps the entire thing, leaving László and his family out to dry. The power dynamic between Van Buren and László is a presence throughout the film; even when Van Buren is being polite, there are moments where he uses his privilege to reinforce it. This is a stunning performance by Guy Pearce, who hasn’t been given a role this meaty in a long time, and he digs into it beautifully.
Since winning his Oscar for “The Pianist,” where he also played a Holocaust survivor, Brody’s career trajectory has been up and down, with some of his best work often being for Wes Anderson (I will forever go to bat for “The Darjeeling Limited”). As László Tóth, he is allowed to create a fully original character that is authentic and empathetic. Tóth is not a perfect individual- he becomes addicted to heroin after being given it help with the pain of a broken nose, and does indulge his base desires after coming to America, despite knowing his wife is still alive- but he is a perfect vehicle for this film to follow. László is exacting in his work ethic, but more flawed in his personal life, and while some of those flaws dissipate after he is reunited with Erzsébet (whom Jones plays with great heart and strength) and Zsófia (who is mute after the horrors she has endured), his indulgences do lead to further issues and struggles, including one where- after Van Buren hires him back to finish the center- they are on a trip in Italy to procure materials for the build. The events of that trip will reverberate throughout the rest of the film, and lead to the film’s biggest misstep (in my opinion), where its main narrative ends in ambiguity, and almost derails its thematic strength for an epilogue that almost feels like a cop out of everything we saw previously. The sentiments of the epilogue are noble ones, but they almost feel out of place with what we witnessed leading up to them.
Its uneasy narrative closure aside, “The Brutalist” is an experience I will not soon forget, whether it’s the film’s story and themes, or the performances, or the breathtaking cinematography by Lol Crawley (shot in Vistavision, a process where 35mm film is run horizontally through the camera) and the stunning score by Daniel Blumberg, which takes an experimental approach to the film’s emotional journey, but feels very appropriate and contemporary to the time period being portrayed. This is a stunning film.
