For some reason, I decided to watch another Tom Hardy movie. I can't believe I haven't realized what a great actor he is, before. I mean, he's done so many different types of roles. Lawless (Forrest), RocknRolla (Handsome Bob), Inception (Eames), and let's not forget The Dark Knight Rises, where he was so awesome as Bane. And he does it all so very, very well. Which is why I felt intrigued by his movie Bronson, from 2008. And I must say, I wasn't disappointed.
Bronson is kind of a biopic, about Britain's most famous (and apparently most violent) prisoner, Charles Bronson. Born Michael Peterson, he robbed a post office at age 19, got sent to prison for 7 years, but ended up staying there for a total of 34 years, 30 of which were spent in solitary confinement. Surprisingly (or not so surprisingly, once you get to know this guy in the movie), he loved it there, and really wanted to make a name for himself. To him, as he puts it, the prison cells were hotel rooms, and the prison a place for him to hone his skills. The name Charlie Bronson, which he later took on, was a fighting name, for when he made money as a fighter on the outside.
Alright, so this movie is awesome. It reminds me a bit of A Clockwork Orange, in some way, and it blends humor with violence and the gritty with the theatrical (literally, as Bronson narrates the movie from a stage with an audience), and the character Charles Bronson is sometimes just bizarre. He really is bizarre, which becomes more and more clear throughout the movie. A few favorite scenes of mine; When he takes a prison librarian hostage in his prison cell to get the guards in there (so he can fight them), and ends up stripping down and rubbing grease all over his naked body (getting the librarian to help him), to prepare for the coming fight. Yeah, sure, 'cause that makes a shitload of sense. And how about the time when he decides to strangle a fellow inmate, mostly just to get out of the mental institution they've put him in, or when he decides to get naked again, cover his entire body in black coal, and make art? You get the idea.
Overall, this movie is hugely entertaining. It's dark, but there's a weird sense of humor there, which made me laugh out loud more than a few times. The music is so wonderfully mixed with weird scenes, the narrating on the stage is original (apt, since all Bronson seems to want is fame and attention), and as always, Tom Hardy does a great job portraying this odd, bizarre and charismatic character. Bronson probably isn't for everyone, but it's great, nonetheless. I give it 4 out of 5 stars.
All my life, I've wanted to be famous. I knew I was made for better things. I had a calling. I just didn't know what I had. Not singing. Can't fucking act. Kind of running out of choices, really, aren't we?
- Charles Bronson
No comments:
Post a Comment