BRUTON REVIEW

In recent years, I’ve become a massive fan of actor Theo Rossi. He absolutely blew me away with his role in Emily the Criminal and in many other movies since then. With Bruton, he finally gets a juicy leading role in a film written and directed by Vincent Grashaw, who also helmed the excellent Tim Blake Nelson boxing drama, Bang Bang, then followed that up with the recent Gangland, starring Lou Diamond Phillips (which I haven’t seen).

Bruton is based on the true story of Bryan Bruton, who escaped from Florida state prison in 2007 with the help of a female guard. It tells a slightly-altered version of that story, following Rossi’s Bruton as he’s trying to leave his life as a Florida drugdealer and hustler behind for a legit job. That isn’t to be, as a chance encounter leads to an altercation, ending with another man dead as Bruton tries to throw him off his moving truck in self-defense.

Bruton is sentenced to ten years in the Lake Butler State Prison, where he uses his skills as a hustler to move up the power ranks. This includes charming his way into the pants of one of the prison’s few female guards, Maura, played by Tammy Blanchard, who helps Bryan receive perks he might not have otherwise. Bryan also makes some friends who act as his partners in crime including Aaron Quick Nelson’s Duncan and Kelvin Hodge’s Jamal. At first, it was a little odd seeing Tony Hall (from Veep) cast as more of a white-collar prisoner who has a background as a radio DJ, which Bryan uses to create an illegal music network for the inmates. After a deadly altercation in the yard, Bryan and Duncan plan an elaborate prison break with Maura’s help that only gets them so far, putting a target on Bryan as he’s bounced between a number of maximum security prisons throughout Florida, eventually ending back at Lake Butler.

I wasn’t familiar at all with the true story of Bryan Bruton before seeing this film, but it was interesting to see Bruton’s name as an executive producer on the film. In fact, the real guy has been all over YouTube talking about his story since his release from jail more than a decade ago, and you can even hear the actual Bruton telling his story on the YouTube show below if you want to know more:

As with most “based on true stories,” there’s a certain aspect of Bruton that requires separating fact from fiction, because Grashaw clearly knows that movies do require some artistic license to make for a more entertaining experience. Bruton does take a little time to get going, essentially to introduce Bryan and his family situation with an always-angry wife, played by Aya Cash, and a loving daughter named Crystal. What happens to Bryan is unfortunate, but it’s also due to the lifestyle he leads, selling drugs to local malcontents, ultimately leading to his stint in prison.

One of the primary reasons why Bruton works so well is that (other than said artistic license) it’s obvious that Grashaw was going for absolute authenticity, particularly in terms of depicting life in prison. It’s very much on par with many of my favorite prison films, like Sing Sing, Shotcaller, Crown Heights, and David Mackenzie’s Starred Up. Having had a prison-based pen pal for eight years, I learned all about the ins and outs of the politics of prison life, and I felt fairly well-informed about these things, even while Bruton’s situation is truly unique to his own story. As much as I enjoyed Bang Bang, this seemed like a real step forward for Grashaw in terms of creating a character-based drama.

Rossi has delivered some fine supporting performances in the past, but his casting as the title character in Bruton makes this a film that will turn many heads to the talents of one of the most underrated actors working today. Playing Bruton requires many different skills in terms of keeping emotions in check, but also allowing other lesser-known actors to shine through. Rossi is in every single scene, ranging from quieter moments to all-out melées, delivering everything I’m hoping for in this type of crime-drama biopic.

As much as Bruton begins like a typical prison movie, then transforms itself into a prison escape movie, the film’s last act is where it really blew me away, as it dealt more with Bryan’s relationship with his daughter Crystal (Kayden Brenna Tokarski), who hasn’t been able to visit her father in more than four years. This section features a brilliant turn by Tokarski, including a scene where I have to imagine that it will be difficult for anyone watching this movie to not bawl their eyes out.

As someone unfamiliar with Bryan Bruton and only knowing a few rudimentary basics about the movie before I watched it, I was quite impressed by Vincent Grashaw’s brilliant telling of his story. Bruton is a fantastic addition to the prison movie genre, offering many pleasant surprises and confirming that Theo Rossi should be cast in far more leading roles like this one.

Rating: 8/10

Bruton premieres at the Locarno International Film Festival in Switzerland on August 12, and it’s currently seeking distribution, repped by Visit Films.