Today’s quick review: Brick. Brendan Frye (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is a high school loner with a sharp mind and a knack for sticking his nose where it doesn’t belong. When his estranged ex-girlfriend Emily (Emilie de Ravin) contacts him saying she is in trouble, he begins an investigation into her whereabouts and the crowd she has fallen in with. He uncovers a tangled web of high school politics, drug dealing, and murder. But to get at the truth, he will have to put himself in danger and follow his investigation wherever it takes him.
Brick is a fast-moving, stylish noir told against the backdrop of a high school wracked by drugs and violence. Writer and director Rian Johnson depicts a world with almost no adults, where teenagers handle their own affairs, and where consequences are dire. The setting treats itself as seriously as any crime drama, which allows noir conventions to map naturally onto a high school setting. At the same time, the restricted setting provides a cohesive world for the characters to inhabit and juxtaposes the high stakes of the plot with the theoretically sheltered environment in which it takes place.
Brendan Frye is almost the perfect noir hero: level-headed, resourceful, dogged, and scrappy in a fight. His investigative techniques involve making a nuisance of himself to those more powerful than him, and like a true detective, he never flinches or backs down. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays the role ably, never bowing to the emotional pressure he is under except in the most extreme cases. Despite a shady past and no clear allegiance to any of the school’s factions, Brendan Frye is a persistent force for justice throughout the film, perhaps the best that can be hoped for in a morally grey world.
The craftsmanship of Brick is superb. Detailed dialogue laced with clues and drenched with teen slang quickly gives the viewer a sense of the world, its values, and its key players. The plot is remarkably tight and proceeds smoothly from one stage to the next. The central mystery has enough twists to keep the most ardent noir fans happy but never devolves into nonsense or inconsistency. The camerawork shows real thought, creating a visual language for the film that the conscious mind barely detects. To top it all off, the film has a beautiful, varied, and understated soundtrack that subtly augments each scene without overwhelming it.
Brick is a well-executed mystery that succeeds admirably in plot, characters, setting, and presentation. Fans of tense, interesting, and well-crafted movies should go out of their way to watch it. Do not expect a light watch, but do not expect a film that wallows in misery either. Brick is a film that constantly moves forward, and despite its serious treatment of bleak subject matter, Brendan’s agency as a protagonist ensures that the situation never seems hopeless.
7.4 out of 10 on IMDB. I give it 8.0 to 8.5 for outstanding quality.