"BRICK"
DVD Review
by Rachel Buccicone
| MOVIE: ***** (out of 5 stars)
DVD EXPERIENCE: ***** (out of 5 stars) STARRING Joseph Gordon-Levitt as BRENDAN Nora Zehetner as LAURA Lukas Haas as THE PIN Emilie de Ravin as EMILY Matt O’Leary as BRAIN Rated R Studio: Universal Directed by: Rian Johnson Back to DVD Review Home |  |
Incredible writing, beautiful cinematography, and perfectly cast, “Brick” is the most impressive film of its time. Definitely inspired by the noir films of old, “Brick” has created its own modern language giving us a film that is Bogart meets high school with poetry in hand.
This detective story follows our protagonist Brendan (Jason Gordon-Levitt) as he discovers the murder of his ex-girlfriend and tries to uncover the mystery that surrounds it. While dealing with very adult themes like sex, drugs, and of course murder, “Brick” takes place in a high school setting. Brendan plays a loner who holds a certain grudge against the rest of the school society. He depends only on a nerdy but socially knowledgeable friend, aptly called Brain, to act as backup to his detective work.
Brendan’s first clue is a phone call he received two days prior to Emily’s (Emilie de Ravin) death. He moves from one person to another all the while getting closer to the heart of the matter. Along the way he encounters Laura (Nora Zehetner), the terribly popular, artsy-looking vamp whose involvement runs deeper than we know.
All parties involved lead back to one man: The Pin (Lukas Haas). The Pin is a twenty-something dope runner who lives with his mother. It seems that some shady situation linked Emily to the Pin and likely caused her demise. However, the story is by no means that simple.
Rian Johnson (“Evil Demon Golfball from Hell!!!”) has written and directed a complex detective story like nothing you’ve seen before. This is definitely NOT one of those films you figure out before the ends, and it likely will not be a movie you will completely understand the first time around. Johnson has created a vocabulary that is part slang and, possibly, part his invention. All speech flows with metaphor after metaphor, which is both beautiful and confusing. The picture’s high school setting adds subtle comedy amidst the deep drama. The story and writing are complex, but it is absolutely worth it.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt (“Mysterious Skin”) plays the perfect, cool-tempered detective. He’s hard and emotionally detached. Gordon-Levitt’s performance is stellar. He gives a performance reminiscent of Humphrey Bogart in his many detective dramas.
Nora Zehetner (“Fifty Pills”) fills the vamp role nicely. Her character Laura has many well crafted lines, and Nora’s acting very much matches the grace of her words. All other performances are great, but none rank as highly as these two.
The cinematography in this film is great. The tints cast a dark shadow over the entire film, reflecting the story. Johnson teaches the viewer to identify characters by certain physical aspects and uses jump cuts to add subliminal meaning.
The soundtrack, the costumes, the props and location all add to the film’s mystery-based story and dark subject matter making an end product I dare deem perfect.
The DVD has some good bonus features. We are provided with more than twenty minutes in deleted and extended scenes. This feature comes complete with scene explanations from Johnson. Another feature is a peek at the auditions for two of the roles. Finally, the film can be viewed with commentary by Johnson and cast.
Anyone with appreciation for film would love this movie. There is some frequent but not at all gratuitous violence and drug subject matter, but no drug usage. I wouldn’t say this film is appropriate for ALL ages, but any mature individual could find enjoyment in this piece. If you are someone who misses the storylines of the golden era of cinema, you definitely should take a look. Overall, I would recommend this film to anyone.
Specifications: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. Anamorphic Widescreen (1.85:1). English Language Track. Subtitled in English, Spanish, and French.
