How does a three-hour and 35-minute movie about the birth of an architectural style grab you for an evening’s slice of entertainment? Before you say absolutely not, then think again. The Brutalist, one of the main front-runners for this year’s Oscars, is an epic drama that is so deep with topics, so impressive in the way that it looks, and so powerful with performances that will blow you out of the water you would be crazy not to go and see it. I think this will win in March, and this movie will stay with you long after viewing it.

László Tóth has escaped the concentration camps of Poland and arrived in America. With no home, no money and only a cousin, who runs a furniture shop, as his saviour, Toth is willing to do anything to stay in America and hopefully bring his wife and her niece over. When Toth and his cousin are given the order to build a new library for wealthy Harrison Lee Van Buren Sr, Toth’s minimalist style of design first shocks and outrages the millionaire until he comes to his senses and decides that he wants Toth to build a memorial for his mother. This begins a traumatic journey into a new way of designing buildings.

Co-written and directed by former actor Brady Corbet, this epic drama starts in 1947 and ends in 1980. It covers a hefty amount of ground within those years, most of it set around the almost impossible feat of the memorial that Harrison wants, which needs to include an auditorium, a gym, a library, and a church. Of course, money, clashes of ideas, and many other difficulties are thrown up, leading to conflict, outbursts, and discrimination. Yet for a film about an architectural movement still in place today (The Nationa Theatre in London is part of the Brutalist form), it is surprising how little we really learn about it.

What Corber is more interested in is the story of Toth, a man with enormous talent who has faced incredible heartache and pain to get to America, looking for his American Dream and facing obstacles and poverty while at the same time escaping from the issues he faces with the use of drugs. This film is filled with subjects to chew over; it would be impossible to list them all here. What does work is that you expect to sit through the how of this vast story when you get an intermission for 15 minutes in the middle of the film. If you think that it’s far too long, just think of watching two episodes of a box set that are 100 minutes each.

This is old-school cinema, from the overture at the beginning to the intermission and the use of VistaVision, a form of film stock that brilliantly captures the period. Daniel Blumberg’s score is loud and impressive, while Lol Crawley’s cinematography is beautiful, inventive, and stunning, making it look like a piece of art.

Corbet has littered his films with outstanding performances from an excellent cast. Guy Pearce, Mike from Neighbours, as Harrison, is exceptional. Here is a man with power, wealth and the ability to be blunt and straight-talking to the point that whenever he opens his mouth, it sounds like he insults whoever he speaks to. It’s a role that Pearce relishes, and even to the end, he has an air of arrogance that makes you connect him with another wealthy person in the news today. Felicity Jones is stunning as Toth’s wife, Erzebeth, and even though she has less screen time than the rest of the cast, she has one pivotal scene that just leaves your mouth dropping to the floor.

The lead is the already Oscar-winning actor Adrian Brody, who won for The Pianist, playing a Holocaust survivor. Once again, he takes on that role as the inventive Toth and is magnificent. It’s a performance powerhouse that draws you into his world and refuses to let you go. Every inch of his role is riddled with emotion, pain, and anger. It’s stunning to watch an actor go on a journey like this, and I think he is a sure thing for the Best Actor award this year.

The Brutalist is a long film, but it’s never dull. It has so many layers that you could be talking about it for months to come, and with the three first-class actors giving it everything they have, this film will grab you by the collar and shake you to your core. What is remarkable about this film is that it cost just under $10 million to make, and they filmed it in 31 days. How can something this good be possible with those figures? A masterpiece;

5 out of 5

Director: Brady Corbet

Starring: Adrian Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn, Raffey Cassidy, Stacy Martin, Isaach De Bankolé, Alessandro Nivola

Written by: Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold

Running Time: 224 min

Cert: 18

Release date: 24th January 2025