LOCARNO26 REVIEW: Bruton [20XX]

Rating: NR | Runtime: 108 minutes
Director(s): Vincent Grashaw
Writer(s): Vincent Grashaw

I never cease to find ways to complicate my life.

Bryan Bruton (Theo Rossi) doesn’t mince words. He knows he’s a criminal. He knows getting locked up is only a matter of time. It’s why he’s finally decided to go legit … and why he can’t help getting mixed up with bad news. So, you can call it ironic that the reason he does get arrested has nothing to do with his drug dealing (at least not directly) or you can call it karmic that he ended up paying for his past regardless. I’m just glad he can tell a good story.

It’s why writer/director Vincent Grashaw signed onto the project after initial reservations about delivering yet another entry into the “harsh reality behind bars” genre. He watched Bruton’s YouTube videos from 2018 and discovered the entertainment potential of bringing his story to cinemas. Part of it is the subject’s own insane trajectory putting his hustle to work on the inside. Part of it is just how crazy life in the Florida penal system was during the Aughts.

Bruton starts with voiceover narration as Bryan sets the stage for what’s to come. His love for his wife (Aya Cash’s Sienna) and daughter (Alexandria Arnold’s Crystal). His popularity due to always footing the bill no matter the cost for those he loves. His inability to keep driving when he discovers the woman he’s ogling is Elana Porter (Dana Namerode) … let alone upon discovering he’s ogling anyone who isn’t Sienna. His penchant for wielding violence as a negotiating tactic.

Grashaw and Rossi play it perfectly with the former utilizing a VHS tracking effect and the latter always being quick to deliver a self-deprecating laugh. I’m not saying the film leans into the “Florida Man” mystique of random headline-grabbing events you can’t believe happened, but it’s tough to not see Bryan Bruton and his cohort as prime examples of the trope. Call it stupidity or hubris, it’s not enough that he allows himself to get played. He also puts his family in the line of fire.

Cue the power play to reassert his dominance over those trying to ruin his life and the tragically unforeseen aftermath of bringing a construction vehicle onto a street populated by numbskulls with zero regard for self-preservation. Cue the logical decision to take a plea and avoid going to trial for murder in the first degree (a charge that probably never should have been made) within a court that gives him ten years anyway. That’s a lot of time for a mover and shaker to operate.

I love the crash course on Floridian prison gang culture and how race is no match for zip code—what’s more Florida than that? Bruton is a charismatic guy who spent six months inside when he was younger, so he knows the rules and how to carry himself to assimilate pain-free. He sees Duncan’s (Aaron Quick Nelson) special forces vet, Jamal’s (Kelvin Hodge) fixer, and Kai’s (Tony Hale) AV specialist as a sum whose value far outweighs its parts. So, the new hustle begins.

Without getting too far into the weeds since this journey is worth experiencing cold for those who haven’t already heard Bruton’s story, I’ll just say that the stars aligned when it comes to technological advancements with the internet and global communication. What these guys do despite limited resources (and thanks to easily pliable yokels like Ronnie Gene Blevins working as guards) is ingenious. Sure, they overstep their invincibility, but it only adds to the drama.

You have Maura Willis (Tammy Blanchard) as their prime mark who gets caught on the hook with love in her heart. There’s Bryan’s brother-in-law Gary (Clayton LaDue) who fancies himself a gangster despite doing little besides borrowing real gangsters’ money. And I can’t remember the name of their mule, but he delivers one of the best WTF laughs of the entire film. It’s non-stop fun and hijinks … right until it’s not. But even the heavy turmoil to come brings its share of levity.

Because despite everything Bruton and company are doing to entertain us with their half-thought-out schemes and selfishness, Crystal is still in the background. She’s the little girl that Bryan labeled his entire world before he went inside and the high school graduate (played by Kayden Brenna Tokarski) who’s been waiting to give her dad a hug again. A lot of the characters come and go once they serve their role to the plot, but she remains to refocus his purpose.

So, come for the dark comedy and stay for the redemption arc. Does he deserve to be redeemed? Well, that’s in the eye of the beholder considering Bryan has no one to blame his bad luck on but himself. It helps that those he uses (symbiotically and parasitically) aren’t any better than him because it means we never feel sorry for anyone but Crystal. She’s the real victim and Grashaw does well to build his script around how that truth has the power to finally change Bruton’s stripes.

We must pull for him despite his shenanigans and collateral damage. We must believe that he deserves a second chance to ensure none of it was in vain. And we also need the sly maneuver on Grashaw’s part to tease that maybe some stripes just can’t be changed. We remember everything snowballed simply because Bryan couldn’t keep his eyes on the road. He tempted fate once and easily could again. Hopefully, his producer credit here proves the hustle found its sweet spot.