DVD Review: The Brown Bunny
by Alex Keen
Published: August 5, 2005
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USA |
2003 |
Sony Home Video |
Vincent Gallo |
Vincent Gallo as Bud Clay
Chloe Sevigny as Daisy
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For more information: IMDb Link
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The Brown Bunny
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Reviewing "The Brown Bunny" is about as easy as reviewing a friend's personal home video. This edgy release only saw limited release in the US, but received an incredible amount of buzz after Vincent Gallo's public spat with Roger Ebert. With a DVD release this film is now available to anyone of age or with the guts to bring it to the video store counter. However, what is in store for them is probably not what they expect.
This ninety minute road film is incredibly slow and not something easily accessed by the everyday movie fan. The plot isn't completely straight forward and requires a viewer's imagination to fill in the blanks. Don't worry because the film has very little dialogue and plenty of empty spaces for you to think to yourself, talk to your neighbor, or feed the cat. Because I was watching this alone I actually did get a lot out of my brain to make the story and interactions make sense.
The character of Bud Clay, portrayed by Vincent Gallo, is your protagonist for the film and despite his low level of dialogue, incredibly complex. His actions are sometimes inexplicable and bizarre within the context of any movie. He has multiple encounters that can be humorous, uncomfortable, and always interesting. Bud is a character I can't recall ever seeing on screen and can't ever imagine meeting in real life. If he does exist, I'd be willing to bow down in front of him.
Very important to this movie is the look and the sound. Without any hesitation, anyone who sees this film should agree that the sound and the cinematography are amazing. This movie looks as pretty as a nature film and does well to distract from the consistent lapses in dialogue. The sound design here is of a rare variety and just as intriguing as the look of the film. For an independent release, this film has a distinct overall design worth exploring.
Finally, the most talked about portion of this film is the graphic sexual events and the unconventional ending connected to these events. Sometimes it is difficult to differentiate between pornography and cinema, but in this instance the separation is easy to define. I define pornography as content meant to titillate the viewer with graphic sexual content. The graphic sexual content in "The Brown Bunny" is not meant to titillate the viewer, but meant to either jar or fascinate. It will jar a conservative or sheltered viewer and it will fascinate an open-minded cinephile looking to expand their palate of cinematic experiences. I connect to this film the same way I did the first time I saw the original version of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." I couldn't believe what I was seeing on the screen, I was disturbed, and I couldn't look away.
With all of that said, my conclusion is "The Brown Bunny" is neither a great film nor is it cinematic trash. It will entertain and fascinate a small population, and will be inappropriate viewing for everyone else.
I give this film a grade of B-.
The DVD adds only two trailers to the mix, but the SuperBit mix helps to make the look and sound of this movie jump off the screen.
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