There’s a certain type of movie Hollywood doesn’t make anymore. Big in ambition, ideas, scope, and especially runtime, these epics defined America’s industry and cemented themselves in the country’s culture. I’m not saying that movies aren’t getting longer (it can be argued they are), and the kinds of films I’m referring to are very much present in other parts of the world. However, they haven’t vanished entirely in this country. The Brutalist, the new film by actor-director Brady Corbet, is a 3-and-a-half hour epic (plus intermission) about the American immigrant experience that feels right at home with the roadshows of yesteryear. Fittingly, it’s also shot on VistaVision film stock, the higher-resolution format Paramount created that was part of Hollywood’s efforts to compete with television.
Spanning decades, the film tells the story of László Toth (Adrian Brody), a Hungarian Jewish architect who escapes a concentration camp and flees to America. After reconnecting with family in Pennsylvania, and awaiting news of his wife’s relocation, he meets the wealthy industrialist Harrison Lee Van Buren (Guy Pearce), who employs him for a massive project. In just two films, The Childhood of a Leader and Vox Lux, Brady Corbet established himself as a unique filmmaker. He’s also an auteur to a fault, and those movies, while certainly conveying a vision, left me underwhelmed. So I didn’t have high hopes for this movie, especially one of that length. Yet here I am, 4 hours later, as the elements of Corbet’s filmography have finally come together in a way that, for the most part, works.
The Brutalist has some of the best filmmaking of the year. The cinematography is stunning, which is fitting for a movie about art. It alternates between wide vistas and gorgeous landscapes, and more intimate closeup and handheld photography (which is notable for a film shot for such a grand format). The score is similarly incredible. Corbet’s last two movies were scored by Scott Walker, who has since unfortunately passed, but the composer for this movie, Daniel Blumberg, has proven himself more than up to the task of filling Walker’s shoes. Corbet supposedly made this movie on a small budget (reportedly under $10 million), and you wouldn’t know it from what you’re seeing onscreen.
Adrian Brody does a great job as Toth. Without giving too much away, he has a notable transformation as the film goes on, and it’s handled very well. He conveys both the resilience and the pain of being an outsider in America. (Brody said during the Q&A that he channeled his own parents’ experiences as both refugees and artists in the role.) The rest of the cast does a great job too. However, the real standout is Guy Pearce as Van Buren, easily one of the best supporting performances of this year. Playing a titan of industry, Pearce is charismatic yet intimidating, giving a grand portrayal that contains all of the worst impulses of those in power.
This is an epic, and what would a film like this be without some truly big ideas? I went into this expecting a sweeping look at the immigrant experience, and for the most part, that’s exactly what I got. Throughout the film, there’s a palpable sense of otherness for Brody’s Toth. Not just being a Hungarian in America, but a Jew in a predominately Christian country. The film’s portrayal of identity is powerful. Toth and his ideas aren’t just foreign to the elite he engages with, but objects of fascination that they, especially Van Buren, seek to exploit. The movie is also a portrait of industry in Pennsylvania and America at the time, supplemented by era-appropriate footage of educational films. It’s a very long film, but I did think the runtime was used well.
However, I did have some issues near the end of the film. The central themes and metaphors come to a head with a brutal moment that, without spoiling anything felt a bit too on the nose, and I wasn’t sure how to feel about it. I also thought that they could’ve done a better job sticking the landing. I plan on seeing this movie again when it comes out, and maybe I’ll have a different opinion of it. There’s a lot here, after all. A towering and deeply personal achievement, The Brutalist deserves to be seen on the big screen in a huge theater. While I didn’t think this was the best movie of the year, it is absolutely the biggest surprise of the year for me, and I’m definitely excited to see what Corbet does next. The movie comes out in theaters on December 20th.
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