In a film built upon the ambitious aspirations of post-World War ll America, director Brady Corbet tells a story in “The Brutalist” of a 1950s Architect immigrating from Europe, attempting to piece together his life after the holocaust.
The film, an Oscar nominee for Best Picture, begins by introducing the main character, László Tóth (Adrian Brody). Tóth has just immigrated to Pennsylvania, where his cousin, Attila (Alessandro Nivola), owns a small business, selling furniture in the local town. Tóth is without his wife Erzsébet (Felicity Jones) and niece Zsófia (Raffey Cassidy) after being separated in Budapest before leaving for America.
Corbet depicts drug addiction and poverty throughout the film to establish the world of 1950s U.S. immigration. Corbet utilizes these immigration struggles to reveal the contrast between the economic class in 1950s America. A series of events leads to Tóth being discovered by an Industrialist, Harrison Lee Van Buren (Guy Pearce). Harrison immediately takes a significant interest in Tóth, recognizing Tóth’s architectural talents. Bursting onto the screen, Pearce’s portrayal of Harrison quickly steals any scene he is in, led by energetic and towering rage, establishing his industrialist might.
Harrison employs Tóth to construct a community center, wanting “something boundless,” and “something new.” Harrison decides to build this center as a memorial to his late mother, symbolizing the idea of leaving something behind. This is a recurring theme throughout the film, as Tóth sets out to build his legacy.
The ensuing events weave and bend through a lengthy run time of Tóth’s life from 1947 up until the late 1960s and early 1970s. From the world of fascism in Europe to capitalism in America. He can be perceived as “lucky” due to his architectural background, in comparison to other European immigrants who don’t fare as well. However, the beginning third of the movie meticulously dives into the struggles he experiences which results in a satisfying payout later in the film.
Despite its intimidating run time at 3 hours and 35 min, “The Brutalist” is more or less split into three movies, each depicting a period of time in Tóth’s life. The film makes up for its expansive run time with an in-depth plot that never seems to drag on. Each of the three parts the film is split into is necessary in understanding Tóth’s journey.
While each chapter in the film is thoroughly detailed, audiences are left questioning Tóth’s life before the events of the film. Tóth is already an established architect but his background is rather superficial, never diving into how he was separated from his family prior to his journey to America.
The film’s best qualities are its strongly developed characters, played to a tee by Brody and Pearce, demonstrating socioeconomic differences in post-war America. Pearce’s portrayal of Harrison can be perceived as motivated by greed and his ruthless business-first priorities, however, he is multi-faceted in that he has a peculiar fondness for Tóth and has high expectations of him.
Tóth’s difficult background and journey to America coupled contrasted with his renowned architectural achievements paints a complicated picture. While the audience is rooting for Tóth to see him achieve success, Corbet raises many questions about his character and integrity. This provides great depth to Tóth’s arc, convincingly played by Brody revealing his complicated life balancing his ambiguous past and hopeful future.
“The Brutalist” isn’t simply a film about great characters. On top of its nomination for Best picture, it also has a nomination for Cinematography. The film was shot on VistaVision, which was created by Paramount Pictures in 1954, to capture the period of the film. Possibly the film’s most iconic shot is of Tóth’s arrival in New York City, an expansive and wide shot of the monumental and towering Statue of Liberty, symbolizing America and the supposed vast opportunities that lay within.
All in all, “The Brutalist” does an in-depth and considerable job illustrating the journey of post-war immigrants and their tenacious pursuit of the “American Dream.” While the runtime is certainly a factor to consider, the commitment to watching this film is certainly worth it, if you have the time. Due to the great writing and execution of the script by a star-studded cast, “The Brutalist” commands seven awards at the 2025 Oscars, including Best Picture, Actor in a Leading Role (Adrian Brody), Actress in a Supporting Role (Felicity Jones), best Actor in a Supporting Role (Guy Pearce), Best Director (Brady Corbet) and Best Cinematography.
“The Brutalist”
3 hours 35 minutes
Rated R
Directed by Brady Corbet
Starring Adrian Brody, Felicity Jones and Guy Pearce
