Brady Corbet's third film The Brutalist has drawn attention with a three and half hour length with a unique 15-minute intermission adding to the extended runtime. This film has reportedly kept the production budget under 10 million dollars making its ambition stand out among larger-scale Hollywood productions. The movie follows a Hungarian Jewish architect navigating life in America with themes of identity loss, culture clash and artistic drive.
László Tóth's Arrival in America Sets the Stage for an Epic Cinematic Journey Through Art and Life
Adrien Brody plays László Tóth in 1947. Aboard a vessel viewers are shown packed shoulder to shoulder, headed to an unknown destination mirroring a story rooted in the death of 6 million Jewish individuals. The Statue of Liberty appears with an askew and crooked view emphasizing László's initial uneasiness of being a refugee in America and showcasing writer director producer Brady Corbet's vision and creative intentions. The Brutalist is an American epic that takes an ambitious cinematic turn from director Brady Corbet
László's Struggle and His Connection to The American Dream in Post-War America
The film shows László adapting to a different life working as a designer. He meets his cousin Attila a Philadelphia based furniture store operator who provides both cot and employment to start over. This film shows the first signs of Lászlo's artistry which involves leather on metal structures despite cabinet business model. Harry Lee a new client introduces László and Attila to Harrison Lee Van Buren Senior played by Guy Pearce who offers the potential for large business opportunity involving the design and installation of a library with palatial designs which will greatly impact his future .
The Brutalist Explores Artistic Vision vs Commercial Reality with Intricate Characters
The film shows Van Buren Sr happens upon a design by László involving a single chair and book stand resulting in major disagreements from his desire for a space full of accumulated items and books. However despite this initial disagreement it sets up a chain of events to allow Lászlo an opportunity to design and construct a multi purpose community center that will become the movie's centerpiece located atop a hill in Doylestown Pennsylvania . Taking this work requires Lászlo to compromise on his ideological standards by assimilating within the current standards with his art battling societal views of mid century America and the volatile character of Van Buren. Felicity Jones joins in a major role as his love Erzsébet who becomes a main focus in many plot points as an ever present reminder of the love he lost in the war years. This storyline offers a different emotional aspect adding complex drama.
Exceptional Cinematography and Performances Carry the Films Powerful Early Scenes
The movie’s first part features incredible artistry focusing on human emotions. Cinematographer Lol Crawley created intense scenes showcasing faces gestures and hands allowing performances to fully shine and be observed from a place of raw emotion. At the train station Lászlo embraces his cousin as if lingering on past times of pain he had witnessed and experienced. In an embrace with his cousins wife, László finds small fleeting joys but appears out of sync with an awkward mix of emotion.
Judy Becker's Impeccable Production Design Creates Authenticity in 1940s Settings in Brutalist Storyline
Judy Becker, production designer for Carol worked on The Brutalist's detailed sets using era specific elements to add both authenticity to each location and economic awareness of the movie budget that allows the film setting to come alive in viewer imaginations. This attention to period specific elements makes viewer belief in setting seamless, creating an environment where design and settings play key elements in story telling that enhance viewer experience.
Creative Tensions and Predictable Patterns in 'The Brutalist's Second Half
The Hard Core of Beauty the films second part showcases increasingly volatile and boorish nature of Van Buren and his lackeys where they become the central problem of film progression. László project presents a visual and structural monument but more and more conventional themes dominate storyline with the pitfalls of fame acceptance and new forms of hate within mid-century America adding predictable outcomes for many who have viewed this type of American story already . The film begins using familiar themes surrounding American Dream which becomes an exploration for what the audience already knows.
Reflecting Real-World Struggles through László's Art and Production Process
The Brutalist's structure is also akin to how László project is formed with increasing production obstacles, becoming even more difficult over time. These problems highlight interactions with individuals like Van Buren showing creative problems that directors and artists face when engaging in a difficult and creatively challenging process that showcases their art, ideals, and dreams. Brady Corbet seems to make a point by giving the audience insight of independent art making . Ultimately it appears that The Brutalist falls back into conventional story progression checking standard narrative elements to allow bigger dramatic sequences rather than focusing fully on inner character growth. Although Brody provides powerful performance as Lászlo the character of artist is forced to become a common drama for sake of story without truly expressing core essence of his life and artistic intention.
Ultimately The Brutalist delivers no deep insight for main character Lászlo but highlights creative struggles for artists navigating an industry dominated by financial forces and compromise and will start a wider theater release in January of 2025. László Tóth’s life with his wife Erzsébet after leaving Europe for the USA has taken a complex path due to his relationship with wealthy client.