sol-
Not a biopic of Charles Bronson the actor, but rather Charlie Bronson, once dubbed the UK's most violent prisoner, this drama from Nicolas Winding Refn is not your typical biographical movie. The film is structured around shots of the protagonist on an auditorium stage where he makes those listening to him laugh and cheer at varied anecdotes from his life. He also performs a memorable cabaret act on stage and seems genuinely happy for all his experiences in prison... until it gradually becomes obvious that his audience is merely imagined and a direct result of his megalomania and hyper-elevated sense of self-importance. A chilling point comes early on as Bronson reveals that he saw prison as "an opportunity" to make a name for himself and find fame in notoriety; all the prison wardens who he encounters are baffled by his frequently unprovoked violence, but it makes sense for someone bent on achieving fame however possible. We are given precious little background information on Bronson and his upbringing though, like what factors drove him to desire fame, but the snapshot of his life that we do get is absolutely unshakable. Tom Hardy is superb as the charismatic title character subject to near unpredictable mood swings and - as per Refn norm - the film looks and sounds exquisite with vivid colours and a great music score. The very pronounced parallels to 'A Clockwork Orange' work well too, though 'Bronson' is far less concerned with society's reactions to the main character's violence than Kubrick's seminal future-set drama.
FilmBuff1994
Bronson is a good movie with a reasonably well developed plot and a terrific cast. The highlight of the whole film has to be Tom Hardy, he was really walking on a tightrope with this role, as it all really relies on his performance. Being the only actual character in the whole film, he truly embodies the spirit and soul of Charles Bronson, it is clear he studied the man inside out, gaining a great understanding of how his mind works. I did find it to be far too art-house for my taste, I was hoping for a genuine biography film on Bronson's life, but there is actually very little here about him. People who do not know who this man is will learn nothing from watching this, the whole thing is basically set in his cell as we go inside his mind while he spends the remainder of his years in prison. I was hoping for a movie that would give us a much deeper understanding of Bronson as a man, but it really just messes around for an hour and a half. I was not going in to this expecting to see him dressed as a clown performing a show or rubbing himself in butter. It had a similar tone to A Clockwork Orange, feeling like the director was trying way too hard to be like Stanley Kubrick. A movie that tries a little too hard to be "out there" can be saved by a stellar performance, which we got in Hardy, who makes this watchable. Flawed but entertaining, Bronson is not what I expected, but I would still recommend it to anyone looking for a good crime film, just do not go out of your way to see it. Follows a man in solitary confinement as he copes with isolation. Best Performance: Tom Hardy
peefyn
Bronson is a very interesting movie. It presents you with a character that seems to have a violence inherit in him, and a total disregard for authority, and does so in a way that make you understand him, despite the huge gap there is between his world and your own. You can see how the system he is a part of does not have a way of dealing with him. And you can also see how his motivations are not evil, no matter how much harm he has caused.I have little knowledge about the actual person this movie is based on, and my opinion on the character in the movie is not meant to be taken as a comment on him. I have no idea if the real life "Bronson" deserved the sympathy granted in him in this movie, but it does make for a very interesting picture.In addition to crafting this character, Refn also comments upon us an audience, as the character is multiple times addressing us directly (even with us represented on screen), and it adds a layer of exposing not only how Bronson appears, but how he chooses to represent himself.This reflected use of both violence and character makes the movie more than worth watching. When you on top of that get some great performances and a good soundtrack, you end up with a very good movie.
manaraldoseri
At first it was only the poster of this movie that captured my attention, browsing Tom Hardy's filmography, and I watched the trailer online. That same night I couldn't help searching for the movie online and watching the whole thing on my mobile phone. There was not one moment through the movie that I felt distracted or bored, to the contrary of that I did not want to blink so that I wouldn't miss one split of a second of Tom Hardy as Charlie Bronson. The movie did not try to give reasons or justifications of why Charlie Bronson was so self destructive, enjoyed violence and pain and preferred solitary confinement over freedom.There is no logic that you can wrap your head around watching Charlie Bronson portrayed by Tom Hardy, going to prison for armed robbery on a post office, receiving 7 years in prison and ends up being locked away for 34 years, 30 of which are in solitary confinement. You certainly will not find a rational explanation why he would suddenly take a hostage just so that he would start a confrontation with the guards, then strips naked and wait for them to come so that he would beat them up and eventually ends up overpowered, bleeding and in agony.The theatrical comic way which the director adopts in filming this movie helps to lighten the violence and brutality of Bronson yet it also helps bring to life his true nature and a depiction of what was going through his mind. I must say, I found myself laughing with confusion as Bronson prepares to torture these poor guards yet once again. Tom Hardy definitely put his heart and soul into this character, going all the way to stripping naked (full frontal), ramming himself naked into a dozen prison guards, sparing no small details to depict the real raw existence of Charlie Bronson. In the end you don't really know how to feel about Bronson, as he never committed murder though he had ample opportunities to do so which would imply that he might not be as evil as one would expect, at the same time his unexplained and un-triggered incline to violence wins your empathy as well as fear of him.
AD
