When visionary architect László Toth and his wife Erzsébet flee post-war Europe in 1947 to rebuild their legacy and witness the birth of modern America, their lives are changed forever by a mysterious and wealthy client.
Nominated for 10 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Directing.
The Garden Cinema View:
Starting with an overture and a strikingly unique credits sequence, The Brutalist boldly presents itself as a monumental work of cinema. This is an immigrant story and an exploration of American capitalism that can be compared to Citizen Kane, The Godfather Part II, and There Will Be Blood (time will tell whether it belongs alongside such luminous company). Undoubtedly, there is something indelibly energising about watching this attempt at serious, epic drama. A series of committed and intense performances play out across a sprawling canvas made cohesive by the production design and Lol Crawley’s cinematography, that moves from claustrophobic intimacy to massive images which rival the work of Victor Kossakovsky. Embelishing and guiding the experience is Daniel Blumberg’s extraordinary, and partially improvised, score.
Watching The Brutalist is exhausting and exhilarating in equal measure, and is a viewing experience that feels pulled from an older age of film.
Includes a 15 minute intermission
