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LOOK: Bronson Blu-ray RRP: $29.98! On Sale Now: $19.49!
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Bronson Blu-ray Details:
BASED ON THE TRUE STORY OF ONE OF THE WORLD S MOST VIOLENT PRISONERS
In 1974, a misguided 19-year-old named Michael Peterson decided he wanted to make a name for himself, and so with a homemade sawn-off shotgun and a head full of dreams, he attempted to rob a post office. Swiftly apprehended and originally sentenced to seven years in jail, Peterson has subsequently been behind bars for 34 years, 30 of which have been spent in solitary confinement. Provocative and stylized, BRONSON follows the metamorphosis of Mickey Peterson, who gave himself the nickname Charles Bronson, from a petty thief into Britain’s most dangerous prisoner.
- Amazon Sales Rank: #26302 in DVD
- Brand: MAGNOLIA PICT HM ENT
- Released on: 2010-02-09
- Rating: R (Restricted)
- Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
- Formats: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen
- Original language: English
- Subtitled in: English, Spanish
- Number of discs: 1
- Dimensions: .25 pounds
- Running time: 93 minutes
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“I only ever wanted to be famous”
It’s very difficult to describe Bronson, and even harder to pigeon hole it into a specific category or genre. Hailed a new “Clockwork Orange” is a bit misleading, as it doesn’t really deal with an overall dystopian view of wild indoctrinated youth, more so one individuals sad spiral into mental self awareness of an inner voice. Although highly stylized, it’s also overall, quite a sad depiction of infamous British criminal Michael Peterson, (renamed Charlie Bronson by his bare knuckle fight promoter boss and former inmate Lenny McLean)
For me, it’s extremely easy to relate to growing up in 70’s England, as a young man with few options (they were hard times all round, with high employment, and a nation still suffering under the machinations of the government of the day). The filming locations and set designs are authentic, and the sense of poverty and misdirection almost tangible.
What follows is “based” on a true story, a more accurate description would be to say it’s based upon Petersons own biographies and books written while incarcerated, and then polished with a lot of poetic license by director Nicolas Wefn.
A boy from a lower middle class but nonetheless stable background, Peterson displayed violent tendencies from a young age, and a slow burn feel of inevitability that he would become the nihilistic man of the title.
However, from a criminal point of view, Bronson was far more of a criminal inside prison than out. A bungled hold up at a post office brought him a 7 year term, he never actually killed anyone (as he states quite clearly during the movie), and from there begins the immergence of the inner man. After the torment of his first sentence he is freed, even falls in love, and bounces around between his eccentric uncles 70’s style opium den (much red lights and heavy drapes inside a projects style apartment high rise) and bare knuckle brawling against men and even dogs!
Still searching for an unknown ambition, “I only ever wanted to be famous” voices actor Tom Hardy in the title role, and like so many people of his generation his aspirations were common for men of his age, although they did not know exactly how or what they would become famous for.
Knowing his true place is back inside he quickly recommits and returns to prison, and sets about countless hostage taking, and guard beating episodes, each one gaining him more notoriety.
He now begins to believe, his chance at glory lies in infamy, on the inside as a feared convict. His achievements were realized when he was labeled by the British press (and other sources) as “Britain’s most Violent criminal”
Still in prison today, he has spent more than 30 years in solitary confinement for his continuous violent behavior.
I’ll stop here to add that Tom Hardy is amazing in what must have been a difficult role. Far removed from Praetor Shinzon in Star Trek Nemesis – now appearing much older physically, he has matured, and certainly beefed up for the role. But the strength of the performance lies in the depth of the portrayal.
The monosyllabic narration scenes that seem to join sections of the story together draw you in and keep you compelled to watch and you believe the story. Hardy exudes an almost palpable menace, as he flicks from deep thought and introspective silence, even sadness to a violent boiling rage in the blink of an eye, truly scary.
The violent scenes are unflinching and brutal, though not overdone or gratuitous. They are also unwavering in how they portray the futility of Bronson’s actions, reinforcing his inner turmoil.
Quite short at 92 minutes, it is nonetheless a powerful biopic, regardless of how accurate the material.
I felt great sympathy for the character (which probably sounds misplaced for someone who attacked, injured and brutalized many prison guards) but the Director (and Hardy) elevate the story to a level above just violence.
The scenes where he returns to his parents new smaller home now replete of his childhood belongings show an undercurrent of helpless, almost childlike loss and sadness for example.
The film flicks between the narration and story scenes to Hardy playing out his life on a make believe music hall stage to a willing audience, giving a dreamy quality that probably prompted the comparisons to Kubrick, and Clockwork Orange.
Accomplished author, artist and sculpture on the one hand, vicious psychotic thug on the other, that never lets you know when he will flick from one to the other makes for memorable (if not always easy) viewing. 4 stars.
Fascinating, humerous, and brutal
Everyone has heard of Charles Bronson. Well, THAT Charles Bronson anyway, the title character here is definitely a far cry from the hardened film hero of the same name. This Charlie Bronson was originally born Michael Peterson, who despite having a decent upbringing, grew up to be a criminal, and much, much more surprisingly. Known as Britain’s most notorious prisoner, Bronson manages to capture the ferocity of the man with tongue-in-cheek humor and sheer unpredictable moments. Tom Hardy, who has been in quite a bit ranging from Star Trek: Nemesis, Layer Cake, and Rocknrolla among others, gives a star-making performance that should be seen to be believed. Besides undergoing a physical transformation in bulking up, Hardy’s performance may very well be akin to what Eric Bana managed to do some years ago with Chopper, in which he ironically enough, played famous prisoner Mark “Chopper” Read. All in all, though it definitely isn’t for everybody, Bronson is wholeheartedly worth your time, mainly thanks to the ferocious performance of Tom Hardy, whose stardom should most definitely (and deservedly) be on the rise.
Not To Be Compared
This is not a Hollywood movie. This is a theatrical interpretation of a man who stuck to his guns. No beginning, no end, just a chunk of this man’s life layed out in a blur of violence and awkward moments. If you collect eccentric cinema as opposed to collector’s editions of Hollywood Blockbusters then you may want to check this out. It’s not the sharpest Blu-Ray image in town but this isn’t one of those movies where that is important. Tom Hardy is amazing and creates a atmosphere where you’re unsure of whether he is Bronson or re-telling the tale of Bronson. This is a Macho (which doesn’t mean females shouldn’t watch it) movie but even more so because these are events that took place as opposed to the Bourne Trilogy, which is good, but come on, this is what really happens when you go around beating everyone up; you go to jail.
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Tom Hardy’s performance in the lead role burns right through Bronson, the somewhat true tale of a real guy who, once the movie finishes, you’ll be very glad is still locked up in an English jail. There’s no obvious reason why Michael Peterson became what he proudly calls “Britain’s most violent prisoner.” His upbringing was normal, his parents meek but loving; he was even married with a child when, in 1974, he attempted a robbery that landed him in the slammer for the first time. Peterson saw this as “an opportunity to sharpen my tools” and make a name for himself; and that he did, eagerly taking on half a dozen guards at once and regularly spending time in solitary confinement (at one point for 69 straight days). A stint in “the loony bin,” where he killed another patient, followed, as did incarceration in a hospital for the criminally insane, a brief period on the outside (having been “certified sane,” he went to live in an uncle’s whorehouse, found work as a prizefighter, and fell in love), and then a permanent return to prison, where he decided to change his name to Charlie Bronson (after the American actor) and, improbably, became a pretty decent painter (a climactic scene with his art teacher perversely invokes the Belgian artist René Magritte). Not all of this really happened, but director and cowriter Nicolas Winding Refn’s film is hardly a documentary; with its saturated color palette, surreal framing devices (Bronson tells some of his tale to a rapt audience in a large theater), and frequent use of black humor, this is a highly stylized and often strange piece of work. Hardy, who has also been seen in Guy Ritchie’s RocknRolla and will be in George Miller’s fourth Road Warrior epic, delivers an extreme performance; sporting a shaved head and a John L. Sullivan handlebar mustache, he is a credible if occasionally cartoonish presence, a leering, profane, joyously violent cockney madman. Extras include interviews, a making-of documentary, and a featurette detailing the extremely buff Hardy’s training for the role. –Sam Graham
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