Customer Reviews

Brigham City

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

"Brigham City" is a startling and original movie, and it marks writer/director/star Richard Dutcher as a talent to watch. It's a film-noirish murder mystery as imagined from the Mormon worldview. Dutcher plays the sheriff of a small Utah town who is also the local LDS bishop. The sheltered little place is confronted by the harsh realities of the outside world when a serial killer comes to town. The film is ultimately about what happens to faith in the face of the starkest human tragedy. It's been compared to "Fargo": comparisons to Peter Weir's "Witness" and the stories of Flannery O' Connor would also be appropriate. Some mechanics of the story are a little shaky, but the power of the performances, atmospheric authenticity, characterizations and themes more than make up for it. 2001 was a good year for film noir, with "Memento", "The Man Who Wasn't There", "In The Bedroom", and this movie. If you are a fan of independent film who looks for something more than the usual Hollywood product, you really should check out "Brigham City."

I'm not Mormon, or even religious, but I found this a very thought-provoking and enjoyable movie. Instead of pounding the viewer on the head with a Bible (anybody see "The Omega Code"?), director Dutcher focuses on the ubiquity of the Mormon faith in the town of Brigham City.

That faith has bound the main character's community together, making it a place where the outside world cannot enter--the protagonist, Wes, won't listen to National Public Radio because he feels the news has no bearing on his life. And he likes it that way, too. The film's conflict comes from the tension between the peace of the community and the fear of the world outside. Should Brigham City keep everyone calm by pretending that the violence never happened, or will doing that amount to clearing the way for further sad events? Wes, as the sheriff, tries desperately to maintain a balance of acting for his community and protecting it from tragedy.

The story is paced just right, with enough suspense to keep you watching. The characters are well-developed with no "Mainstreet USA" yokels or stereotypical Mormons--Wil Brimley as former sheriff Stu battles his conscience over cigarettes, and a local bar does a thriving business. The cinematography is excellent, with a lot of breathtaking shots of the desert scenery.

Even so, my main recommendation for this film is that (in spite of one or two mildly gory scenes that might not be good for those under 10) it's a "family" film with none of the forced quality that so many "family" films have. It examines things you want to discuss with young people, like faith and trust, without any cheesiness of either the religious or the Hollywood variety. Brigham City is a believable story with a believable resolution that people of any religious persuasion can understand and appreciate.

Richard Dutcher wrote, directed and starred in Brigham City. It is as if he looked at Fargo, made a list of all that movies defects, and set about making a movie correcting them.

Brigham City is a murder mystery, in which a serial killer suddenly starts eliminating young women in a small Utah town. The sheriff who must find the killer, is also a Morman bishop. The job makes demands, that as a man of faith the sheriff would prefer not to confront.

The murders are grisley, but the details are left to the imagination. The police work portrayed in the story is accurate. The acting is so fine, the people of Brigham City are real enough to be your neighbors. The story is interesting and the suspense builds steadily to the aprehension of the murderer. The murderer is an arrogantly cool psychotic. And most significantly of all, the entire story actually takes place in Brigham City.

This is a story of a good man doing a difficult job. Go see this movie, you will like it.

"Brigham City" is a tight, intense, and above all, thought provoking murder mystery.

Forget the wannabe critics like myself, this movie received high praise from many (if not most) of the nation's most revered movie critics. For example: "The perfomances are impeccable..." - NY Times / "...tense, well-spun murder mystery" - Mr. Showbiz / "...involving, nicely crafted whodunit" - Hollywood Reporter / "...a thoughtful film that deserves a wider audience" - Chicago Tribune / "A tight and surprisingly effective murder mystery." - TV Guide's Movie Guide.

Richard Dutcher successfully broke new ground with God's Army by all but inventing the "Mormon Film" genre. Regardless of whether or not you liked God's Army, it's surprise success established Dutcher as a formidable writer/director.

While short of being flawless, "Brigham City" continues Dutcher's success streak (allbeit short-lived) to 2 of 2, and more importantly, it raises the bar significantly. This is a better, more ambitious movie than "God's Army!"

I liked and enjoyed "God's Army," but "Brigham City" succeeded on so many more levels. It was truly creepy, intense and most importantly, complex. It dared ask some of life's darkest and most difficult questions. Questions like, Does evil prey upon innocence? and, Why does God allow suffering and tragedy to apparently devastate the lives of good people? Without providing clear answers, viewers are left to contemplate and discuss these questions long after the film is over.

Yes there are religious (Mormon) overtones to this movie. However, this time around, they are less of an infomercial for Mormonism, and more central to the movies more important themes of original innocence, innocence lost, and ultimately forgiveness.

In summary, a majority of the critics can't all be wrong. This is a great movie as well as an original movie. Where else will you see a murder mystery that is capable of spiritually moving you and disturbing you at the same time?

I had been waiting for this one to come out on DVD for a long time. You see, I am LDS and a police officer. From my own experiences, I know it can be difficult to manage at times the quandary of duty to God and duty to man. I feel that Mr. Dutcher's film does this dilemma, to make a bad pun, "justice". Mr. Dutcher plays the lead role in the film, Wes Clayton, a sheriff in a small Utah town. At first, Wes seems like......sort of a dumb redneck. And I mean that in a good way. His beliefs almost seem child-like. However, as the movie progresses, Wes rises to the challenge to find the serial killer who terrorizes the town he is responsible for. Wes is also a Mormon bishop in the town, and so is looked at not just as the local law enforcement leader but as a spiritual leader as well. He handles the situation admireably.

I won't give away the plot; suffice it to say the film comes to a shocking yet satisfying ending. Also, at the risk of sounding like a prude, mainstream Hollywood directors could learn a lot from Mr. Dutcher's subtle approach to the subject matter. The film easily gets some unpleasant ideas across without being over the top in violence and sexual subject matter.

Do yourself and your family and friends a favor. Buy this DVD and share it with as many people as you can.

"God's Army," Richard Dutcher's previous film, remains one of my favorite movies of all time. "Brigham City" is its worthy follow-up, and exceeds it technically. I love good suspense/mystery films and "Brigham City" certainly succeeds on this front. But it is more than this because of the Mormon setting that underpins it. I am not Mormon myself, but appreciate the spiritual worldview which undergirds and deepens Dutcher's films.

What I like about Richard Dutcher's work is how his stories are propelled by a faith which seems an intregal part of his artistic life. To me his films are art; conveying an immersion in life and the human experience through story -- rather than a story told in order to promote faith.(Although, truthfully encapsulating one's spirtitual journey/underpinnings is in itself promoting of the
spiritual impulse in others).

"God's Army" and "Brigham City" each have one scene that to me encapsulate Dutcher's talent. In "God's Army" it was the scene where the greenie missionary spends the night wrestling/praying for a personal spiritual experience to enable him to continue on his mission. In "Brigham City' it is the scene at the end where the female FBI agent attends the LDS ward service before heading for home. What is conveyed for me is that while a part of her longs for the community and faith present there, she realizes this is a private moment for those who have spent their lives within that community, and quietly leaves.

In both films the scenes are subtle, and gain power because their story is largely implied, without words. This, to me, is the signature of an artist.

When my wife suggested we get 'Brigham City' on DVD I gave her one of my better puzzled looks, and for some reason, before I had a chance to suggest the newly released 'Back To The Future' parts 1, 2 & 3 -- I found myself saying, 'Yes'. WHY??? I'll never know, but I have found out since that I have been glad that I did.

Richard Dutcher. Who in the WORLD is Richard Dutcher? Other than writing, producing, acting AND directing this movie, I'd have to say he's a pretty smart fella. Is he in a league with some of the grossly overpaid directors working today? No -- not YET. As others have gone out of their way to state, 'Brigham City' is a Murder/Mystery set in a small Utah town that lives, eats and breathes as a very strong LDS Community (Mormon). Some reviewers, who are obviously anti-Mormon, and have a rather slanted version of ANYTHING done by ANYONE who happens to be a member of this religion have taken the low-road and blasted the movie's inclusion of the LDS faith, almost as an additional character in the story. But for those of us who live in small rural communities, and have an understanding of the LDS beliefs, you realize that a story such as this could NOT be even remotely accurate without the religious additions to the storyline.

With that said, 'Brigham City' is a facinating mystery tale told rather well. Aside from Wilford Brimley, I recognized absolutely NOBODY...and that turned out to be actually a nice plus to the film. A well-meaning Brigham City Sherrif stumbles upon a murder, and after first trying to brush it under the local floor mat to preserve the image that small towns simply do NOT have to deal with tragedies such as this, an additional horrific crime scene is discovered. Before long, the sherrif must come to terms with the frightening realization that a serial murderer is on the loose in this tight knit community. This forces the Sherrif into overdrive mode and he immediately takes action in ways that would cause almost all lawyers in North America to suffer heart attacks, but in small towns such as Brigham, the end result is not whether or not you violated someones rights in order to save a life, it's whether or not you saved a life -- PERIOD. Can't say as I blame them. I'm not too sure I'd be worried about having a search warrant if it meant ending the suffering of someone captured and held with the very real possibility of being murdered. All that aside, (we could debate it for a very long time, I would imagine) this story is genuinely surprising, especially in unmasking who the real culprit is. I admit I had him pegged fairly early on, but I waivered several times as the story unfolded, but that certainly didn't stop my overall enjoyment of seeing the plot unwind.

I am going to be recommending this to all my friends who are fans of murder/mysteries. And once again, for those of you who are stanch anti-Mormon, yes, it'd be a good idea to skip this, but if you can keep your short-sightedness in check for 2 hours, you just might end up learning something about the LDS Church, and enjoy yourself at the same time. Something that I must admit happened to my wife and I as we sat and watched this engrossing tale. In short, I'm glad I said YES when my wife suggested we get this DVD.

I really liked this film. It's a small murder mystery set in an apparently 99.9% Mormon fictional small town in Utah. The primary unfolding drama is the story of the small town's sheriff facing up to the sudden presence of a serial killer in their innocent little western oasis where nobody even locks their doors. What I really enjoyed, as both a non-Mormon and a strong believer in mysticism , was the film's humanization of Mormons through the subplot of a small faith-based subculture confronting tragedy and resolving its place in a non-believing world. I enjoyed the tension between the "outsider" female FBI agent and the widower sherriff (who is also a Mormon Bishop).

The film has some flaws; but its by-the-book predictable plot devices don't get in the way of it being a deeply affecting film about the place of spirituality in modern life. I recommend it and will probably buy it when it's out on DVD.

I have never been on the edge of my seat for so long. What is better is that this unpredictable film keeps you there without gore or nudity. This movie proves that one can entertain without needing an NC-17 or R rating. In fact, this movie is better off without it.

This is a thrilling murder mystery and is to the Mormons what Witness would be to the Amish-- a good look at their society and how they would react if thrust into such a situation.

The solution to the mystery is shocking and unwinds too fast. Yes, critics will snipe at the Sheriff/Bishop for violating the constitutional rights against unreasonable search-- but devout Mormons in a town thrust into similar circumstances would tolerate it considering the motivation was a race against time to save the life of a young woman.

The fatal flaw is that if some young stud claiming to be a returned missionary and Eagle Scout showed up to work in another Mormon town, it is reasonable to expect the Sheriff may not run a check on fingerprints and references. What is not reasonable to assume is that the local ward clerk would not send for membership records once the newcomer decided to stay and the jig would quickly be up. Even in the unlikely event this happened, the fact that he was assuming the identity of a deceased man would arise once his marriage was recorded and again when his child was born. Mormons are too big on record keeping to let an imposter slip through three times.

Still, the film is a good mystery overall with a shocking ending if one can overlook this one piece of divergence from reality.