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Joseph Gordon-Levitt steps into a must have for film noir: the telephone booth, and
thus kicks off a strangely affecting teenage version of the genre that's a cross
between Raymond Chandler and David Lynch
thus kicks off a strangely affecting teenage version of the genre that's a cross
between Raymond Chandler and David Lynch
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who gave such an amazing and unsung performance in last year’s Mysterious Skin plays Brendan, another
disaffected youth, this one a loner mixed up in the murder of his ex-girlfriend in Brick, the debut feature from young writer-
director Rian Johnson. A defiant, intelligent loner, Brendan is apparently the only one upset about the murder of his ex-girlfriend
but he’s determined to find out what happened. He delves into the underworld of drug dealers that pervade his high school and
slowly peels away the layers to get to the truth. All the kids talk in a sort of coded lingo – a sort of modern take on 40s short cut
slang – and the movie is filled with archetypes from film noir (there’s a cool, scheming blonde, a hot head muscle man, a sinister
elegant villain, etc.). In addition to screening Laura, Out of the Past and other noir classics, Johnson has obviously been studying his
David Lynch Bible as well and eventually the clever “noir speak” and bizarre tics he “gifts” the characters with (the drug czar wears a
Barnabas Collins Vampire cape and has a gold duck headed cane for example) wears out its welcome (the solution to the murder
case takes a back seat to these hi-jinks).
The idea of utilizing the hard boiled detective format – with its heightening of reality to the point of artifice – as a template for all
that high school drama is a stroke of brilliance on Johnson’s part (at no other time of life are things quite so IMPORTANT) and he is
aided by some terrific young actors (with Gordon-Levitt and Lukas Haas as the bizarre drug kingpin topping the honors). The offbeat
music score, which keeps changing tone and musical colors is another plus. Though a bit too gimmicky for my tastes, Brick is an
offbeat little oddity that announces an assured, original talent in its execution.
disaffected youth, this one a loner mixed up in the murder of his ex-girlfriend in Brick, the debut feature from young writer-
director Rian Johnson. A defiant, intelligent loner, Brendan is apparently the only one upset about the murder of his ex-girlfriend
but he’s determined to find out what happened. He delves into the underworld of drug dealers that pervade his high school and
slowly peels away the layers to get to the truth. All the kids talk in a sort of coded lingo – a sort of modern take on 40s short cut
slang – and the movie is filled with archetypes from film noir (there’s a cool, scheming blonde, a hot head muscle man, a sinister
elegant villain, etc.). In addition to screening Laura, Out of the Past and other noir classics, Johnson has obviously been studying his
David Lynch Bible as well and eventually the clever “noir speak” and bizarre tics he “gifts” the characters with (the drug czar wears a
Barnabas Collins Vampire cape and has a gold duck headed cane for example) wears out its welcome (the solution to the murder
case takes a back seat to these hi-jinks).
The idea of utilizing the hard boiled detective format – with its heightening of reality to the point of artifice – as a template for all
that high school drama is a stroke of brilliance on Johnson’s part (at no other time of life are things quite so IMPORTANT) and he is
aided by some terrific young actors (with Gordon-Levitt and Lukas Haas as the bizarre drug kingpin topping the honors). The offbeat
music score, which keeps changing tone and musical colors is another plus. Though a bit too gimmicky for my tastes, Brick is an
offbeat little oddity that announces an assured, original talent in its execution.
Dashiell Hammett Goes to High School:
Brick
4-7-06 "Knight Thoughts" web exclusive
By Richard Knight, Jr.
Brick
4-7-06 "Knight Thoughts" web exclusive
By Richard Knight, Jr.