I Watched The Brutalist Streaming, But Watching At Home Loses One Of The Most Charming Parts
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The Brutalist, a movie CinemaBlend described as a 'unique marvel in 21st-century cinema,' was the best movie I saw in 2024, and a theater experience on the same level as modern classics like There Will Be Blood and No Country for Old Men. In fact, I sat through Brady Corbet's Academy Award-winning epic twice during its theatrical run, and loved it even more the second time around.
So, when I found out it was going to be available with a Max subscription (like so many other great A24 movies), I decided to explore the deconstruction of the American dream through the eyes of Adrien Brody's László Tóth once more. To my surprise, one of the most charming (and talked about) parts of the movie was much different in this version. And I don't know how I feel…
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Let me say this: there is no wrong way to watch The Brutalist. I felt the same way watching it on my TV at home as I did upon first experiencing the surprisingly cost-efficient drama on the big screen all those months ago. The imagery, the themes, the outstanding performances by Adrien Brody, Guy Pearce, Felicity Jones, and Joe Alwyn were just as moving on a 50-inch TV as they were in a dark theater.
If, for some reason, you think you missed the boat by not catching the theatrical run and are afraid you'll lose something watching at home, know that this is not the case. I will admit that some of the scale is lost, but this was something I easily got over not long after László Tóth first arrived in America with the promise of a better future.
But there is one change that was made to The Brutalist on streaming when compared to the theatrical release. Remember how everyone was talking about the 15-minute intermission before the movie even came out late last year? Well, it's still there in this version… it's just shorter. Much shorter.
When the first half of the movie came to a close and 'Intermission' flashed upon my screen, I expected to see the 15-minute timer ticking down. However, this version instead has a one-minute timer. Everything else about the sequence is the same – it's still a static image of László and Erzsébet's wedding before World War II upended their lives – but it just felt different.
I'm not sure if it was Brady Corbet or A24 who decided to trim 14 minutes from the intermission for The Brutalist's home release, but it does make sense. Having the ability to pause the movie during the intermission means you can make it a single minute, 15 minutes, or use it as an opportunity to split the movie into a two-part miniseries if you start it too late at night. Plus, it also makes the movie 14 minutes shorter…
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However, the change caught me off guard and bummed me out a little. The intermission was one of the little charms and throwbacks to classic cinema that made The Brutalist such a unique theatrical experience. Like I said, it's still a tremendously powerful movie that everyone should watch at least once, but I'm still a little bummed.
That said, go out and watch The Brutalist, take in its massive scope and scale, and press pause for 14 extra minutes during the intermission if you're so inclined.
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