Charlie Bronson is the most dangerous man in Britain's prison system. Does this biopic do the man justice?
Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn Written by Brock Norman Brock and Nicolas Winding Refn
Cast
Tom Hardy ... Michael Peterson a.k.a. Charles Bronson
Matt King ... Paul Daniels
James Lance ... Phil Danielson
Amanda Burton ... Mum
Juliet Oldfield ... Alison
Hugh Ross ... Uncle Jack
Edward Bennett-Coles ... Brian
Kelly Adams ... Irene
Katy Barker ... Julie
William Darke ... Michael Peterson, age 13
Charlie Bronson (real name: Michael Peterson) is often referred to as the most violent prisoner in Britain. He makes no excuses for his violent attitude. He blames no one, not his parents, not his upbringing, nothing. He is a creature of habit, a man who fights to fight. If you listen to the man you might believe he is an artist and fighting is his art form.
The character of Bronson is Tom Hardy’s masterpiece. Hardy tackles this man with reckless abandon and shows us a performer, a man who wants to be recognized as the ruler of the prisons in which he resides. Parts of the movie has Bronson stand on a stage and speak to an audience, almost performing for their amusement. His performance here might be the persona of Michael Peterson, the intellect and artist who wants people to see the showmanship in his actions and humor if there is any to be found. When we see him in his scenes of brutality he is Charlie Bronson, a man who strips naked, paints his body and beats up guards and officers with no fear for his own safety.
Bronson was originally sentenced to serve six years in prison for armed robbery, his mother assuring him he would be out in four. He has now been locked up for 35 years thanks to his ultra violent behavior. This doesn’t seem to be a problem for the man who looks at his incarceration in a different view and his jail cell as a hotel, not a prison. He does anything to remain in prison, including attempting to kill a man when he is institutionalized and committing another robbery when he is finally released.
Director Nicolas Winding Refn (Pusher) directs Bronson as a mixture of A Clockwork Orange and Fight Club. Bronson himself is a damaged, violent individual who loves to fight and takes out his aggression on anyone and everything around him. Even when he finally finds something that makes him happy, artwork, he ends up taking his instructor hostage as an opportunity to fight his way back into solitary confinement rather than eventual freedom. It is the story of a man who the system tries in vain to change but fails miserably at every turn.
The movie is a biopic but makes various changes to show us the contrasting style between Bronson the prisoner and Peterson in the free world. There was a period of time in 1988 when Bronson was released for 69 days before being arrested again for robbery. The movie paints a completely fictional account of this release, adding in scenes with him becoming an underground fighter and falling in love, only to have his heart broke. He then purposively breaks the law once again in order to go back to the safety of prison.
The comparisons with Stanley Kubrick and A Clockwork Orange are never more apparent than in the final scene where he takes his art director hostage. He paints his entire body, as well as that of his instructor, and then concludes the scene with an amazing choreographed sequence of yet another naked brawl with authority. The scene is shot with little dialogue and is orchestrated with techno music, perfectly fitting the fight. It might be the most visceral fight sequence since Kubrick’s ballet fight in A Clockwork Orange and the music mixed with the sheer brutality of the fight makes for an amazing experience.
At the end of the movie we learn Bronson is still incarcerated. He never killed a man, yet spent almost four decades behind bars thanks to the system’s inability to rehabilitate the man. Is this movie a condemnation of the system? I don’t think so. I don’t believe the movie is saying the system can’t “cure” Charlie Bronson. I think the movie is just a portrait of a man who doesn’t fit in anywhere except behind bars and will do anything in his power to remain there. Tom Hardy takes this man and creates someone we can only watch with astonishment, equal parts violent and strangely captivating. Hardy spent hours meeting with and speaking to the real Bronson and I can only imagine his portrayal must be an accurate portrait of a very unique personality. Hardy has achieved his masterpiece and awards should be forthcoming.
The 411: Bronson is a movie that shows a man who has found a home, in Britain’s prison system, and will do anything possible to remain there. It is not a movie for the faint at heart. There is a lot of frontal nudity and even more brutally violent fight scenes. Bronson spends little time in this film without a crushed, beaten face. But if that is something you can get beyond, Bronson is an amazing film. It shows the lengths a man will go to prove his dominance in any situation. Charlie Bronson is someone who appears to be secure behind bars and recoils in fear and violence whenever his life is threatened with change. Tom Hardy is amazing in his role as Bronson, eclipsing anything he has done before. He is in negotiations to play Mad Max in the upcoming fourth movie and after seeing him here I am excited about this prospect for the first time. Bronson is a tour-de-force of filmmaking and will leave an imprint on your mind you won’t soon shake.
