Product Description

When a prison guard who sadistically beats prisoners finally becomes unbearable, the inmates stage a vicious riot.
No Track Information Available
Media Type: DVD
Artist: LANCASTER/CRONYN
Title: BRUTE FORCE
Street Release Date: 04/17/2007
Domestic
Genre: DRAMA

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #35653 in DVD
• Brand: LANCASTER/CRONYN
• Released on: 2007-04-17
• Rating: Unrated
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Black & White, DVD-Video, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
• Running time: 98 minutes

Amazon.com
Jules Dassin's brooding, brutal drama about a prison wound to the breaking point by a sadistic captain of the guards is a classic film noir as well as one of the greatest prison films ever made. Burt Lancaster (in only his third film but already commanding the screen like a pro) is the savvy prison veteran whose clashes with Hume Cronyn (the ambitious guard with a god complex) land him first in solitary then in the claustrophobic drain pipe, a muddy, airless work detail that slowly kills every man assigned to it. With the help of his cellmate buddies and former gangland boss Charles Bickford he hatches a plan to break out, but Cronyn has his own plans for the unbreakable prisoner. Dassin's oppressive prison is thick with atmosphere: cavernous buildings and halls that echo with the footsteps of inmates and the clanking of bars, overcrowded cells that seem to close in on the men, a busy machine shop where the film's most memorable scene takes place--the ruthless assassination of a stoolie in a pounding metal press. Cinematographer William Daniels, a master of Hollywood's soft-focus glamour, creates a harsh, hard-edged look for the film, softened only by looming shadows. A sense of doom hovers over everything, culminating in an explosive finale, but the barbaric, brutish violence hangs in the air long after the film is over. --Sean Axmaker

On the DVD
Criterion's beautiful restored print of Brute Force is accompanied by a small collection of supporting materials, including a commentary track by longtime film noir experts Alain Silver and James Ursini. They give a good brief on the film's history, such as the disagreements between producer Mark Hellinger and director Jules Dassin on the subject of the movie's use of flashbacks--an approach that would break the claustrophobia of the prison sequences and introduce female characters. Hellinger wanted the backstory, Dassin objected, and the producer won; but the point is definitely arguable. Prison-movie specialist Paul Mason gives a useful 15-minute talk, partly on Brute Force and partly on the genre of prison movies. Criterion's booklet has an excellent essay by critic Michael Atkinson, a vintage 1947 profile of the colorful columnist-turned-producer Hellinger, and an intriguing, bitter exchange of letters between Hellinger and Production Code chief Joseph Breen on the subject of the film's censorship problems. --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews

Don't drop the remote...or the soap
I've been anxious to broaden my film horizons with some classic pieces of American cinema. The results have been mixed. Some times I feel some of these "classics" are a bit of a bore. They might have some significant themes, but also have unrealistic plot developments, fanciful dialogue, and a severe case of overacting.
Thankfully that is not the case with Brute Force. This is just a gritty, intense prison-break movie. Like nearly all movies of this sort, you have the evil Captain abusing the inmates(and somehow these criminals usually come off as decent guys victimized by bad luck). These men get fed up with these unconscionable atrocities and hatch an ingenious escape plan.
Now, there are some extremely violent scenes which somehow caught me by suprise(duh Chris, the title is Brute Force). I was really impressed with some of the special effects, they left me wondering how they were pulled off without someone getting hurt.
This movie aptly explores the ruthless nature of man. This has terrific acting, pacing, stunts, dialogue, and camera work. A top-notch prison movie.

a fine movie
This review is for the Criterion Collection DVD edition of the film.

Brute Force is about a group of people attempting to escape from a prison. The prison has a particularly sadistic guard who beats the prisoners savagely. The film also has a prison riot in it which is somewhat intense.

The special features are audio commentary by Alain Silver and James Ursini, an interview with Paul Mason, author of a book on the depiction of prison life in popular culture, a trailer and a photo gallery.

This was an exciting film and is sure to please.

Brute Force
Made just prior to "Naked City," Dassin's gritty prison melodrama puts a twist on the archetypal bust-out scheme by revisiting, in flashback, the pre-penitentiary lives of Collins--ably played by an intense young Lancaster--and his crew, colorfully brought to life by character actors Whit Bissell, Howard Duff, and John Hoyt. In a fine performance, Charles Bickford appears as the prison's gruff de facto leader and newspaper editor who throws in his lot with Collins. The other ace in Dassin's deck is Cronyn, playing a corrupt, savage prison guard bent on bringing "discipline" to his inmates, while nursing a megalomaniacal ambition to replace the wimpy Warden. Aside from the ominous noir visuals, Dassin explores issues endemic to prison life and wraps them up in an ugly finale meant to evoke a Nazi bloodbath.