The Brutalist: Adrien Brody’s film on its way to the Oscars
Already awarded the Silver Lion for Best Director at the Venice Film Festival 2024 and several trophies at the Golden Globes 2025, The Brutalist, Brady Corbet’s third feature film, is the clear favorite for this year’s Oscars. This ambitious and daring three-and-a-half-hour film will be released in cinemas on February 12, 2025.
An ambitious work of art with an exceptional cast
In The Brutalist, Adrien Brody stars as László Toth, a visionary Hungarian-Jewish architect and concentration camp survivor. The story follows his immigration to the USA in 1947 alongside his wife Erzsébet, played by Felicity Jones, as he struggles to impose his architectural vision while confronting his own demons.
The film also boasts outstanding performances from Guy Pearce and Felicity Jones. Adrien Brody, initially a replacement for Joel Edgerton, received unanimous critical acclaim, winning the Golden Globe for Best Actor.
Between controversy and standing ovations
As soon as it was screened in Venice, The Brutalist elicited mixed reactions: some critics denounced the film as “pretentious and disjointed”, while others hailed it as a “masterful” fresco with exceptional direction. At its premiere, the film received a standing ovation lasting 12 minutes, a sign of the profound impact it leaves on audiences.
However, Brady Corbet’s bold choices, including explicit scenes and an atypical running time of three and a half hours, continue to divide opinion. Speaking at the Golden Globes, the director asserted, “I was told that this film was indistributable, that no one would come to see it…. But it works.”
An Oscar favorite
Following its triumph at the Golden Globes (Best Picture, Director and Actor), The Brutalist is positioning itself as a serious contender for the Oscars. There’s already talk of nearly a dozen possible nominations, notably in the Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor categories. It rivals such works as Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance and Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Perez.
Paris and Brutalist architecture
While László Toth’s story is mainly rooted in the United States, his career resonates with Paris, a city that embodies the richness and evolution of architecture. Fans of the Brutalist style will see links with iconic buildings such as Le Corbusier’s Cité Radieuse.
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