The Brutalist

Best Cinematography, Best Soundtrack, well deserved. The theme song is very epic. Too long, I was annoyed watching it in two days.Are you blind to build such a black cricket church? No one objects? Finally, the architectural concept is to build a machine without redundant parts, but the two uprights on this building are shaped and have no functionality at all. Since the template is a concentration camp, why do we have such extreme requirements for the height? I thought it was a tribute to Brutalism from the title, or focused on its huge sense of oppression and the shadow of totalitarianism behind it, but it turned out to be just promoting the Venice Architecture Biennale. In addition, although it was definitely influenced by it, were there any founders of Brutalism who came from the Bauhaus? It turned out to be Guy Pearce, I thought it was an unknown actor who looked like him. It was obviously foreshadowed that he didn't understand art. Is it necessary to be so intoxicated when choosing marble, just to show his acting skills?! The boss was exposed, and since he had no evidence, he just refused to admit it. This was his first reaction, and then he ran out to commit suicide? In addition, he complained that his daughter's apologies to his architect wife were nonsense. Either he knew that his father had done something dirty, or he hated her for ruining his father's reputation. These two things cannot be compatible. Since he attributed all the setbacks to the fact that Judaism was not tolerated by the Christian world, why didn't he go when his niece wanted to go to Israel? At that time, he was not doing well, and he should have made great efforts to build Israel.

On the occasion of the 97th Academy Awards, I watched the more than 3-hour Brutalism. Director Brady Corbett's Brutalism was too ambitious this time and failed to support its grand theme of "self-righteousness". The narrative was ambiguous and even collapsed. Let's try to analyze it: 1. Brutalist architecture: the solidification of post-war trauma and the symbol of civilization Brutalist architecture was born in the ruins of Europe after World War II. With its exposed concrete, geometric oppression and absolute functionality, it has become a solidified symbol of post-war trauma. This style is not only a rebellion against the hypocritical aesthetics of decorativeism, but also a dialectical expression of violence and civilization in the depths of human nature. In Brutalism, the character design of Laszio Toth is the perfect embodiment of this symbol. His architecture is not only an artistic creation, but also a response to his own mental trauma - the experience of escaping from the war in Europe, the torture of drug addiction, and the paralysis of his wife. These sufferings are transformed into the coldness of concrete and the oppression of geometry in his design, becoming a torture of civilization. When Laszio's ambitious design was tried to be transplanted to the United States during the immigration process, the symbolic meaning of brutalist architecture changed subtly. In the United States, brutalism is no longer a product of post-war trauma, but a symbol of "new civilization". Harrison Van Buren Sr.'s appreciation and support for Laszio is ostensibly a respect for art, but in fact it is the domestication of "foreign civilization". Harrison's "civilized man" mask gradually peels off, exposing the inner barbarism - a violence born of jealousy and loss. This violence is not a structural product of the capitalist system, but an individual's fear and resistance to the essence of civilization. Through this narrative, Corbett hinted at the duality of brutalist architecture: it is both a symbol of civilization and a criticism of pseudo-civilization. 2. Laszlo's experience: the individualized conflict between civilization and barbarism Laszlo's experience is not a bloody history of Jewish immigrants, nor is it an allegory of capitalist exploitation, but an individualized conflict between civilization and barbarism. Harrison's frustration and finally losing control of his "rape" of Laszlo did not stem from class oppression or anti-Semitism, but from fear and jealousy of the essence of the new civilization - accepting brutalism. This fear is not an abstract opo system problem, but a specific psychological reaction: Harrison, as a "successful person" (in fact, he is a "nouveau riche" from the past conversations between the two), supports Laszlo's design on the surface, but cannot accept his civilized mask being exposed. Through Harrison's collapse, the film reveals the fragility of "pseudo-civilization". His violent behavior is not aimed at Laszlo's Jewish identity, but at the essence of civilization represented by Laszlo - an artistic force that transcends material interests and points directly to the depths of human nature. This power makes Harrison feel lost and afraid, and finally tries to destroy it in a barbaric way. Through this plot, Corbett hinted at the core paradox of brutalist architecture: it is both a symbol of civilization and a violent exposure of pseudo-civilization. I personally think that his experience has nothing to do with the United States's exclusion of immigrants, capitalism's exclusion of immigrants, or even the entire capitalists' exclusion of immigrants. On the contrary, Laszlo is a successful case as a Jewish immigrant, because his talent was quickly discovered and he got the opportunity, and finally successfully proved himself. This is exactly the embodiment of equal opportunities for immigrants from all countries in the United States in the 1950s after the war. 3. The ghost of Zionism vs. anti-Semitism: vague direction and profound implication Although the film does not explicitly point to anti-Semitism, there is a subtle tension between Laszlo's Jewish identity and Harrison's final violent behavior. Harrison's "appreciation-betrayal" of Laszlo is an individual conflict on the surface, but in fact it implies the contradictory attitude of American society towards "foreign civilization". Laszlo's success and Harrison's collapse are not only a contrast of personal fate, but also a symbolic conflict between civilization and barbarism. Whether there is anti-Semitism in the film and whether the root of the problem of Zionism is hidden in it is worth discussing: for example, when Laszlo was asked by Harrison why he wanted to be an architect, he answered the eternal ideal of crossing the people circle, and because of his efforts at all costs to achieve this ideal and seize this golden opportunity (the shrewd and capable national culture of the Jews that was popular in Europe before, or even a kind of nature), he might be disliked by Harrison Lee Fan's family (mainly father and son) and lead to personal tragedy; The film further deepened this theme through the speech of Laszlo's niece. Her words are both a praise for Laszlo and a criticism of "pseudo-civilization". When she said "we tolerate you", it was not only a complaint about Laszlo's personal bigotry, but also an implicit rejection of "foreign civilization". This rejection is not systematic anti-Semitism, but an individual's fear and resistance to the essence of civilization. Through this vague direction, Corbett hinted at the deep root of anti-Semitism: a fear and jealousy of "other" civilization. IV. Artistic Expression of Brutalism: The Dialectic of Violence and Civilization Corbett's greatest ambition is to combine the aesthetics of brutalist architecture with narrative violence, attempting to reveal the dialectical relationship between civilization and barbarism. Laszlo's design is not only a revolution in architecture, but also a violent exposure of "pseudo-civilization". Harrison's "rape" behavior is not only a collapse of personal morality, but also a violent response of "pseudo-civilization" to the essence of civilization. However, Corbett's narrative does not fully master this theme. Harrison's motivation is simplified to "jealousy of talent", lacking deeper psychological excavation; Laszlo's "rude" behavior (such as scolding workers) appears too personal, weakening the symbolism of the conflict of civilizations. Nevertheless, the film successfully reveals the dialectical relationship between civilization and barbarism through the aesthetics of brutalist architecture and Harrison's violent behavior: civilization is both a product of violence and a criticism of violence. Conclusion: An unfinished allegory of civilization "Brutalism" is an unfinished allegory of civilization. Corbett tried to reveal the dialectical relationship between civilization and barbarism through the birth of brutalist architecture, but lost himself in individual conflicts and symbolic accumulation in the narrative. Harrison's violent behavior and Laszlo's design achievements are both the victory of civilization and the failure of pseudo-civilization. However, the film failed to fully master this theme, making the boundary between "civilization" and "barbarism" unclear. In the end, the film became a metaphor about the essence of civilization: brutalist architecture is both a symbol of civilization and a violent exposure of pseudo-civilization. Through this metaphor, Corbett tried to question "what is civilization", but exposed his own brutality in the narrative - an oversimplification and symbolization of the theme. If the true meaning of civilization lies in the tolerance of contradictions, then "Brutalism" may just need to prove the price of this tolerance: all sharp edges will eventually be smoothed into landscapes. But the director failed to do it. The great actor brought the character of Laszlo to life

[Brutalism·United States/United Kingdom/Canada·A24·2024] Brutalism is an architectural term. It also has another alias, "Bauhaus architecture", which we are familiar with because of Beijing 798. Brady Corbett, who grew up from a child star to a director, co-wrote this script with his wife. They tried to find an example of a Bauhaus architect in the United States who wanted to escape the war and rebuild his life in the New World, but they found nothing. So, this is a fictional history and an imaginary film. In addition to architecture, it also explores the heavy themes of class, immigration, Jewish identity, culture and business, inspiration and madness, ambition and arrogance, and examines the soul of a person and a country.

The film took seven years to create, the story spans 33 years, and the length is over 3.5 hours. It was shot entirely in VistaVision screen format. When it was screened in 70mm film format at the Venice Film Festival, 26 reels of film were used, weighing 300 pounds. The film fictionalizes the dream-chasing career of a Hungarian-born Jewish architect who escaped from a concentration camp in World War II to the United States. A film that few people have made today, a grand narrative, magnificent production, and ambitious film declaration, an American epic on par with There Will Be Blood and Once Upon a Time in America. But it is also a character-driven film, rather than placing the characters like butterfly specimens against the background of a major historical torrent. Brody, the most stylish and broken browed man in the world, once again played a Jewish victim after The Pianist. His mother was a Hungarian immigrant during World War II. In the film, he used his thinness and depression to express emotions that were more profound than the character itself. You can almost touch the pain that was full of his nerve endings, and he also reached an unprecedented height in his resident performances in Wes Anderson's films for many years.

However, this is not the traditional American dream, just like the architect in the movie saw an inverted and distorted American logo when he first met the Statue of Liberty. The protagonist escaped the persecution of fascism, but ran into a life poisoned by capitalism. His fate has long been determined by Goethe in the prologue: the most hopeless slaves are those who mistakenly think they are free.

Goethe's motto "The most hopeless are those who have fallen into slavery but mistakenly believe that they are still free." The ending will definitely be different from what you think, either better or worse. The way of all things is self-evident. "Is there a better explanation of the existence of the definition of the cube than the structure of the pen cube itself? The war broke out, and I think that many of the projects I built will still be preserved. They stand still in the city. When the terrible memories of Europe no longer make us feel ashamed, I look forward to seeing them become a political inspiration, inspiring those social upheavals that have been repeated in the cycle of national destiny. I can foresee that the various forms of human anger and fear, this ridiculous torrent may continue to rise and fall, but my buildings will stand firm in the turmoil and resist the erosion of the Danube banks." "What a poetic answer!" "Maybe luck has finally favored me once. Something unexpected happened, and I got an interesting opportunity to try, which is also my second chance in life." Losing a mother is an unimaginable pain. Losing a biological mother is equivalent to losing the foundation for a foothold in the world. The mind may not realize how great this loss is, but the heart can. "Returning to the country means liberation" (Settling in Jerusalem) "If you hate the persecution you have suffered, why do you become such an easy target for what you have done to yourselves? If you are idle, living on charity, and becoming a parasite on society, how can you expect a different result with confidence? You have so much potential, but you are squandering it." "Your uncle closed a door, and the man I married was inside, but I couldn't decipher the door lock code." "When dogs are sick, they always bite the hand of their benefactor. Until someone is kind enough to give them a good rest." His ideal of life is not only to define an era, but also to transcend all eras. In his memoirs, he described his design as a machine without redundant parts. It is the best design and his best level, with a solid core, a hard-core and rough beauty, a way of introducing the perception of their local residents into the world as it is. The inherent laws of concrete things such as mountains and rocks define them. They symbolize nothing, they do not convey any information, they just exist. “No matter what others try to tell you, it is only the destination, not the journey itself

In terms of image quality and aesthetic value, "Brutalism" is definitely far superior to "Anora". However, judging from the content of the film, this film, which is more than three and a half hours long, is really a bit long and boring. The director took so much effort to make this long film, but the audience was tired of watching it. At the same time, the director wanted to express too many things in this film, but there was no core theme. In addition to promoting the art of brutalist architecture, the film also involves issues such as war, race, religion, immigration, capital, marriage, family, and rape. However, the film only touches on these issues and does not explore them in depth. These issues are forced into the fragmented life of the actor Laszlo Toth like a hodgepodge. Under such a hodgepodge, brutalist architecture seems to have become a decoration that is only used to increase the artistic connotation of the film. However, it is precisely because of this that the film does not involve any professional knowledge related to brutalist architecture. Even if the audience does not understand brutalist architecture, they can still understand the movie smoothly. (This film is not a biographical film about a historical figure. The protagonist Laszlo Toth is actually a completely fictional character, and there may not even be a prototype for the character.)