February 23, 2023
FILM: BRUISER
DIRECTED BY: MILES WARREN
STARRING: JALYN HALL, TREVANTE RHODES, SHAMIER ANDERSON
RATING: 3 ½ out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
Whether violence is hereditary or part of one’s environment has been debated for decades. The new film Bruiser, from director Miles Warren, explores the issue and continues that discussion in a very well crafted manner. At the start of the film, young Darious (Jalyn Hall) is enjoying life at boarding school. The place has an ivy-league look with intelligent uniformed students. When break time arrives, Darious finds himself at home with his sophisticated parents but without a lot of the similarly minded friends he has at school. Meeting up with old friends that have seemingly not advanced in the way he has is a problem for Darious. The boys have a propensity for physical fights and Darious has no choice but to fight back. Then he meets Porter, a muscle bound adult male who Darious asks to help him with his self-defense skills. Little does he know but Porter is his biological father who has been away for twelve years.
There are a lot of qualities that endear us to Porter. He’s charming and has a sprightly swagger that Darious welcomes as his other father Malcolm is much more strict and hardened. Porter is carefree and daring. His dreadlocked hair flops into his face while Malcolm is the clean-cut suburban father with a beautiful wife (Monica.) From the perspective of Darious they may both have their positive attributes but Porter has the fresher perspective and one that Darious needs at this moment. Jealousies surface as Malcolm sees the strong bond Darious has made with Porter. It seems the men have a history of violent behavior together but have since taken different life routes. This conflict leads to an inevitable climax between them that is rich in tension and possessing its own violence.
As the darker sides of the two adults surface it’s hard not to wonder if toxic masculinity is inherited or environmentally born. Certainly Darious has traits of both fathers, and it does seem that Malcolm also has a history of violent behavior. In part, the film is asking if such an approach to conflicts can be suppressed or is it part of one’s own being. Is there a natural tendency toward toxic behavior within the male gender? If we are pushed too far does it inherently rise to the surface?
The film never over indulges in this theme because it is simply a well-made and well-acted family drama. Jalyn Hall is appropriately directed to stress non-verbal facial communication over any kind of over-acting. He seems quite entrenched in the role. In an Independent Spirit award nominated performance, Trevante Rhodes, who played the oldest version of the main character in Moonlight, is excellent as Porter. His physicality is not on display to same level as it was in that Oscar-winning film because he is a much more complicated character that relies more on his personality than his physical prowess. It’s actually a great contrast to the much more introverted character he played in that film. Shamier Anderson is also quite good as Malcolm and Shinelle Azorah really shines as Darious’s mother Monica.
This is a tough drama about a family at a crossroads. Thanks to the well-developed screenplay and direction it’s also simply a very compelling film.
Bruiser debuts on Hulu tomorrow.
FILM: BRUISER
DIRECTED BY: MILES WARREN
STARRING: JALYN HALL, TREVANTE RHODES, SHAMIER ANDERSON
RATING: 3 ½ out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
Whether violence is hereditary or part of one’s environment has been debated for decades. The new film Bruiser, from director Miles Warren, explores the issue and continues that discussion in a very well crafted manner. At the start of the film, young Darious (Jalyn Hall) is enjoying life at boarding school. The place has an ivy-league look with intelligent uniformed students. When break time arrives, Darious finds himself at home with his sophisticated parents but without a lot of the similarly minded friends he has at school. Meeting up with old friends that have seemingly not advanced in the way he has is a problem for Darious. The boys have a propensity for physical fights and Darious has no choice but to fight back. Then he meets Porter, a muscle bound adult male who Darious asks to help him with his self-defense skills. Little does he know but Porter is his biological father who has been away for twelve years.
There are a lot of qualities that endear us to Porter. He’s charming and has a sprightly swagger that Darious welcomes as his other father Malcolm is much more strict and hardened. Porter is carefree and daring. His dreadlocked hair flops into his face while Malcolm is the clean-cut suburban father with a beautiful wife (Monica.) From the perspective of Darious they may both have their positive attributes but Porter has the fresher perspective and one that Darious needs at this moment. Jealousies surface as Malcolm sees the strong bond Darious has made with Porter. It seems the men have a history of violent behavior together but have since taken different life routes. This conflict leads to an inevitable climax between them that is rich in tension and possessing its own violence.
As the darker sides of the two adults surface it’s hard not to wonder if toxic masculinity is inherited or environmentally born. Certainly Darious has traits of both fathers, and it does seem that Malcolm also has a history of violent behavior. In part, the film is asking if such an approach to conflicts can be suppressed or is it part of one’s own being. Is there a natural tendency toward toxic behavior within the male gender? If we are pushed too far does it inherently rise to the surface?
The film never over indulges in this theme because it is simply a well-made and well-acted family drama. Jalyn Hall is appropriately directed to stress non-verbal facial communication over any kind of over-acting. He seems quite entrenched in the role. In an Independent Spirit award nominated performance, Trevante Rhodes, who played the oldest version of the main character in Moonlight, is excellent as Porter. His physicality is not on display to same level as it was in that Oscar-winning film because he is a much more complicated character that relies more on his personality than his physical prowess. It’s actually a great contrast to the much more introverted character he played in that film. Shamier Anderson is also quite good as Malcolm and Shinelle Azorah really shines as Darious’s mother Monica.
This is a tough drama about a family at a crossroads. Thanks to the well-developed screenplay and direction it’s also simply a very compelling film.
Bruiser debuts on Hulu tomorrow.