What we learn from “Brawl in Cell Block 99” is that Vince Vaughn is a terrific actor. The man who has made his fame in a bevy of slapstick comedies (“Wedding Crashers,” “The Internship“) has a knack for serious roles when called on. In this piece he’s the complete opposite of what one has come to expect, but pulls it off with fluidity.
We also learn that writer/director S. Craig Zahler has some potential as a filmmaker, with great cinematography for most of the movie, but a weakness with the writing. Vaughn’s terrific performance is the only reason to sit through this tale, which is filled with the amateurish pitfalls of overly elongated scenes, useless characters that are introduced and then quickly forgotten about, and an absurd and unrealistic portal of violence and implausibility.
“Brawl in Cell Block 99” sees Vaughn as something other than his typical slacking 40-something who always messes up with love or life. Rather, we see a behemoth of a man (Vaughn’s real life height of 6’5 is an effective part of the character) named Bradley Thomas, with a giant tattoo splashed across the back of his cleanly shaven skull.
Early on, we get a taste of the good and the bad with Bradley. He’s a tough guy for sure, revealed later to have once been a successful boxer. We also get the idea he’s the type of guy that tries his hardest to walk the straight line but always seems to flirt with trouble. Bradley is a comical guy when needed, with simple replies to questions like how are you doing with “South of okay, north of cancer.”
But the dark tones of the movie aren’t only the literal sepia drenched color scheme the story is filmed in. Bradley has a violent streak in him, and a volatile temper, as illustrated in a great scene early on in which he confronts his wife (Jennifer Carpenter) who is having an affair. Wanting to reconcile the marriage, Bradley takes a job running drugs for a local dealer, sending his life further into the abyss of chaos.
Some of the filming decisions are excellent. I loved the driving shots depicting Bradley just cruising around from a dash cam perspective as his obvious paranoia draws the stink eye from guys in a car beside him, or sees him watching a drug addicted homeless man on the street. The drug deal that ultimately goes bad for Bradley is one of the most tension filled scenes you are likely to watch, and Vaughn does such a brilliant job that you won’t even recognize him.
Where “Brawl” fails is the miserable pacing issues that see an otherwise intriguing plot carried out to the brink of nearly 2.5 hours. Several scenes are completely unnecessary, as well as a handful of characters and concepts introduced for no other reason than to drag out an already long enough story. And the suspension of belief is there from beginning to end, whether its the arrest, trial, and conviction of a criminal being complete in less than 3 weeks, to the over-the-top, cigar-smoking warden (Don Johnson) who hides an inhumane section of the prison that would make Guantanamo Bay look like a spa weekend in Aruba. Once the fighting starts, you’ll wonder if Bradley is a former boxer, or Batman himself, as he takes out a multitude of thugs with the simplicity of being an arcade game hero. The gore and bloodshed quickly escalate and by the end you’ll be frowning with disgust.
“Brawl in Cell Block 99” has a great acting performance, but little else in the way of acceptability. Its long and slow, and other than a handful of fights, has little else in the way of excitement.
by – Matt DeCristo
