"Brutalist": An upside-down cross, an upside-down America. *Warning! Contains spoilers.

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2025.03.04Rui Takeshima

*This article touches on the core of the story, so please be careful if you have not seen the movie.

"Brutalist" Synopsis

Talented Hungarian-Jewish architect László Tod (Adrien Brody) survived the Holocaust during World War II, but was forced to be separated from his wife Erzsébet (Felicity Jones) and niece Zofia (Raffey Cassidy). To start a new life with his family, László emigrated to Pennsylvania, USA, where he met wealthy and prominent businessman Harrison (Guy Pearce). After learning of László Tod's brilliant track record in Hungary, Harrison recognized László's talent and commissioned him to design and build a chapel with all the necessary facilities in exchange for his family's early immigration to America. However, many obstacles stand in the way of design work in America, where the culture and rules are different from those of his home country. Contrary to the American Hidden Figures that László had hoped for, he was faced with great difficulties and costs.

Index

A gigantic structure

The film "Brutalist" (24) is a work that truly resembles a megastructure, as it tells the story of Hungarian-Jewish architect Laszlo Toth (Adrien Brody), who survived the Holocaust and travels to America to risk his life to build a community center.

The prologue + Chapter 1 is 100 minutes, the intermission is 15 minutes, and the second chapter + epilogue is 100 minutes. The epic, which lasts a total of 215 minutes, maintains a beautiful harmony through perfect symmetry of time. And just as László designed a complex consisting of a library, theater, gymnasium, and chapel, this film precisely arranges various factors (rooms) such as religion, politics, nation, family, love, violence, and madness. The theme of architecture is also used as a structure.

The title "Brutalist" comes from an architectural style called Brutalism. This style, which derived from the Modernist movement, pursues functional and organic beauty by eliminating all decoration and using materials such as concrete and glass as they are. However, its avant-garde expression is disliked by people who value classicism.

During his first term in office, Donald Trump specifically criticized brutalist architecture and issued an executive order stating that new buildings constructed by the federal government should be classical (Trump reissued the order after returning to the presidency this year). The Trump Tower, with its golden escalators, glittering chandeliers, and waterfalls running along the walls, is decorated with decorative elements throughout, and is the polar opposite of the Trump Tower. He is also reported to have said of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) headquarters, known for its brutalist style, "I honestly think it's one of the ugliest buildings in the city" (*1).

The news site Business The Insider argued that Brutalism "expressed the ideals of socially conscious government and collective democracy" and "was not a blatant imitation of past glories, but a forward-thinking vision with faith in the future." (*2) If that is so, then this progressive architectural style represents democracy and freedom in itself. The film "Brutalist," in which the protagonist, who was imprisoned in a concentration camp, escapes persecution and heads to America, is a work in which cinematic and architectural themes are perfectly aligned.

America is the land of freedom. Many stories about immigrants coming to this land have been made, including " The Godfather Part II " (1974). However, "Brutalist" is a little different. This film does not portray America as an ideal country. When Laszlo enters New York Harbor, the camera captures the Statue of Liberty upside down. Democracy and freedom are reversed. Rather, this great nation bares its fangs at the protagonist who has escaped from a concentration camp.

Artists exploited by capitalism

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