Bronson

Michael Peterson is, as this film lets us know, the most famous prisoner in the United Kingdom. His fame is largely due to his propensity for unprovoked violent attacks on anyone who annoys him, or, doesn't for that matter. Since he has spent most of his adult life incarcerated, most of his violent outbursts are directed against prison guards, seemingly, for the sheer fun of it. During a brief period of freedom between prison stretches, he earns money in some underground fights: using as his professional name, Charles Bronson. This film is packed with excellent performances across the board; unfortunately though, it's not enough. The narrative is choppy and uneven, and uses the pointless and annoying device of having the lead character address a live audience in order to "explain things". This isn't rocket science, and the conceit is both unnecessary and gimmicky. The film doesn't spend any time trying to explain his violent urges, although Bronson does claim on more than one occasion that he wants to be famous. We know it's not prison that did it to him since we see him pre-prison, pummeling a classmate at school. This guy is angry and after 90 minutes we never find out why. He eventually begins to explore his artistic side, and will soon become accomplished in this field: in addition to becoming a published writer. These facts are barely touched on in the film, and I have no idea why. A number of reviews have said that Bronson is some sort of modern A Clockwork Orange. A greater disservice to that outstanding film could not have been done. If the subject matter of this film interests you, you'd be much better off watching the endless stream of cable shows on prison life. Everyone I've ever seen has been more entertaining and illuminating than this one.

Rating - 1 Star