Tuesday, February 6, 2018

BRAWL IN CELL BLOCK 99 (2017) ****


I was a fan of S. Craig Zahler’s Bone Tomahawk, but nothing could’ve prepared me for the awesomeness that is Brawl in Cell Block 99.  I love it when a director shows me something I haven’t seen before.  In this case, it’s Vince Vaughn being a total badass.  As much as I like Vaughn, he never really struck me as the badass type.  Cocky and likeable, sure, but not a hulking, scary, bringer-of-death.  Now that I have seen him in this, I am perfectly okay with the idea of Vaughn playing Jason in the next Friday the 13th movie.

Zahler is a novelist, and he approaches his films as he would a book.  Structurally, they’re very similar.  He also spends a lot of time on establishing his characters and developing their relationships before turning the screws to them.  While some may find the first half of Brawl in Cell Block 99 slow, it’s here where Zahler is allowing the meat to marinate.  The last half hour is when he fires up the grill, and it is a gloriously bloody, insanely gory buffet of brutality.  (Imagine if Sam Peckinpah and Herschell Gordon Lewis had a baby out of wedlock.)  Without the character-driven first half, the movie would’ve come off as a nasty, but effective piece of exploitation filmmaking.  With it, the film is elevated to high art.

I will avoid plot specifics, as some of the plot turns are deliciously disgusting and downright wrong.  Not matter how pulpy it gets, you’re emotionally invested, thanks to Vaughn’s performance.  Vaughn is a revelation.  I can’t stress this enough.  Halfway through, you kind of forget it’s him.  Shaved completely bald and stomping around the place like a freight train on two legs, Vaughn has transformed himself into a beast of a man.  Even though he’s a physical monster, his moral compass is so strong that you are with him every step of the way… or I should say, every stomp of the way.  Every time he puts a boot down on some miserable bastard’s head, it’s cause for celebration.

The eclectic supporting cast is equally fine.  Jennifer Carpenter is excellent as Vaughn’s pregnant wife.  At first glance, her role is a thankless one, but she proves to be more resilient and savvy than what she appears to be.  

My jaw dropped when Udo Kier showed up.  I totally wasn’t expecting him at the party.  The wonderful thing is, Zahler knows exactly how to use Udo.  How many movies have you seen where the director thoroughly wastes Kier?  Not Zahler.  He gives Udo what might be his Udo-iest role yet.

Then there’s Don Johnson.  Holy Hell.  He gives what is probably the most sinister performance in a movie rife with sinister performances.  How come it seems like only Tarantino, Rodriguez, and Zahler are giving him roles like this?  As much as I liked his work on Miami Vice, I have to say he’s never been better.

By all means see this movie.  This is truly something special.  Everyone involved is at the peak of their powers.  I just read that Zahler’s next movie features much of the same cast AND Mel Gibson.  I don’t know about you, but I can’t fucking wait to see what he has up his sleeve.  (Not only that, but he’s apparently written the next Puppet Master movie too!)

2 comments:

  1. Great review. I completely agree with everything you said. On second viewing I also really appreciated the practical special effects as opposed to CGI. They look iffy in some scenes but it is still better then the alternative.

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  2. Yes, the practical effects along with the cinematography and song cues give it a gritty '70s feel.

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