Customer Reviews

The Brown Bunny

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(20)
1 star:		(46)

 

 

Since this movie is known most for the controversy, I am going to start and finish with it to reflect people's habit of starting and ending their impressions of something with a scene out of context. It wasn't porn, and my argument for that comes completely from the context... what happens directly before and after that moment. Basically, people have been angry at Gallo for being self-involved in this movie, especially that scene, but during that scene the self-involvement is literally the point. It's masturbatory, but the key is that it drains him, just like masturbation. One thing the DVD box says about it is that it's one of the "frankest portrayals of male sexuality on film" and so let's be frank here.

His sexual confusion is part of his grief, and part of grief is the habit of trying to deny it actually happened. So when he starts acting dominant during that scene with what's happening, it's his subconscious trying to throw a sort of male sexual dominance over something he doesn't understand and hasn't allowed himself to accept. But when it drains him, he's forced to admit that he doesn't only grieve for her but hates her for forcing him into that grief, and from there comes probably one of the best conversations (or inner dialog) I've seen in film in a long time.

But does it necessarily need to be "shown" rather than implied?

Well yes. Because the character's focus is so involved on it, it literally is all his mind is allowing him to care about in that moment. Basic rule of a close-up: if the camera focuses on something like that, then the director is trying to point something out. If it's porn, it's meant to arouse... but this scene isn't arousing, especially because of its context.

But enough of that, because I want to discuss something else about this movie. Partly because of the controversy around this movie, and partly because of the publicity, I had the initial impression that Gallo was an abrasive and over-masculinized character in this film. Wow, complete opposite... I totally related to his character. Of course, his short relationships with those women don't seem to work at first, but once we get an idea of where he's coming from in his grief (and men's general dislike of expressing it or asking for help), the relationships make perfect sense in terms of being representational (thus the obvious motif of all of their flower names and his name as "Bud"). Basically, the first woman fits what he's looking for courteously, the second emotionally, and the third emotionally, but none of them match the full attraction he has to the only woman he's ever loved. I liked it.

And the long continuing imagery of the road trip was really neat too, as it actually really captured that introspective feeling of it. Most roadtrip movies show the car in moments of time from the exterior... which kind of changes the perspective of what a roadtrip is. This movie shows it literally from the passenger seat, complete with the dirty/smudged window and the long road stretched ahead. I think there was only one shot that was actually an exterior of the van when on the freeway, the rest of the exteriors were when the van was parking or he was stopped somewhere. I find it very lovely, ultimately, and as my mother once said, "The road trip is something of a rite of passage amongst American males. It's a moment when they take on as much of the world as they feel necessary all on their own." Gallo seems to have the same idea, though there is a major American film genre built around that idea as well: the road as a literal transfiguration of self-discovery.

So, going back to the controversy, it really disappoints me that this film has to be known for that when there is so much more art and beauty and innocence it has to offer. I also find the controversy rather inconsistant, considering most people have absolutely no trouble with the female body in various states of arousal, yet as soon as "the male gender" is shown, it's pornographic! The funny thing is, it contributes to that very male sense of fear and dominance they feel they must assert sexually. So I guess I could make an argument that Gallo did that scene to attack that inconsistant form of sexual censorship, but if I didn't already know that basically Sevigny and he agreed to do it because, "Why not, we were in a relationship, we did it before, might as well just show it!"

--PolarisDiB

Yes, well, of course most people don't like this movie. If people don't realize by now that Brown Bunny is aimed at a limited audience--especially after all the hullabaloos (hullabali?) raised by this film--I don't know what to say about the movie-viewing public. The following are the facts of the matter; let them serve as either a warning or invitation to prospective viewers.

(1) The film is (materially) uneventful. By this, I mean that nothing much "happens" as far as dialogue, events, or otherwise obvious Hollywood razzmatazz. There are no car chases, explosions, fist fights, cute romantic foibles, jokes, sight gags, or secret government plots. What there is, is a lot of driving--of a van, across the U.S. There are minor, nearly wordless encounters scattered around, but the film is predominantly a mood piece, meditative, allusive, cathartic, evocative... If this doesn't sound appealing to you, then by all means save yourself the hassle and avoid this film like the plague. But to all those who think this is nth degree in a director's self-indulgence, this movie doesn't even come close. See a movie like Goodbye Dragon Inn or, for that matter, any of the major Taiwanese directors, and then you'll see a slow movie! (But not necessarily a bad one, however.)

(2) The movie is brutally depressing. If you make it all the way through (and many will not), you'll unlikely be whistling a merry ditty or feeling particularly chipper. It is certainly not a feel-good movie; in fact, it might qualify as a feel-very-bad movie, which I prefer anyway. A lot of people complain about depressing movies--they would rather watch something light and diverting. But here's the discrepancy: this isn't the cinematic version of Muzak, here to pacify the populace; it is art--which may (fear or fears!) be distressing at times. Life's like that. Get used to it. We have more than enough "entertainment" around to neutralize us into thoughtless zombies... pop music, magazines, TV, sports, and (ahem) the internet, just to name a few.

(3) Okay, here's another doozy, and this is the reason the movie has gotten any public notoriety whatsoever. There is an actual sex scene containing actual oral sex (apparently anyway) between Vincent Gallo and Chloe Sevigny. But, if you are visiting this page, you probably already know this. After all, why would 95% of people be visiting this page? If you are thinking of watching this film for the erotic factor, skip it. There are countless adult films better formulated to satisfy your needs. This scene is hardly what I would consider titillating. It's more sad, in a way. And, no, Chloe Sevigny hasn't destroyed her career by doing this, nor has she made an especially bad choice. (Notice that not many people accuse Vincent Gallo of destroying his career by doing the same thing. But of course many people strongly dislike Vincent Gallo anyway. I myself don't like his right-wing politics, but I still love this film.)

Okay, those are the three main obstacles preventing most casual viewers from "enjoying" (is that even the right word?) this film. If one or more of them seems unappealing to you, then save yourself the ninety minutes. It's as simple as that.

It was very appealing to me, however, and I imagine that some other people out in the world will find this film as important, moving, and meaningful as I have.

There is a lot about the Brown Bunny that didn't make sense, but in the end I found myself haunted by it. I find it rather ironic, that Bud Clay loved Daisy despite the fact that she didn't make sense, and in the end he was haunted by her.

In any case, the Brown Bunny is a film about a motorcycle racer who travels across country for his next race which happens to be in California, near where the love of his life, Daisy, lives. There is little more I can say about the film without giving away spoilers, for this is a film with a minimalist plot. Bud does meet some women across the way; women he is attracted to, yet, who are not Daisy.

Many say that the Brown Bunny is junk, but it did a lot for me. Here goes...

First, the scenes with Bud and the woman were some of the best man - woman interaction I have seen on film. With little to no words, I felt myself attracted to them. Gallo does a marvelous job of using the camera to convey attraction. Despite the quirkiness of the 3 flowers, Rose, Lilly and Violet, I found myself oddly attracted to them. This was due to the filmmaker and the acting between Gallo and said actresses. In these 3 minimalistic scenes, Gallo shows us everything that can be good about film romance, and everything that Hollywood is missing. Call it a lesson on chemistry, if you will.

Second, the film felt familiar. It felt like my journey, and a journey I have taken. The journey built up suspense as to what Bud was up too, and in the end delivered. But more than that, the journey is familiar because each of us (or most of us) have had those confusing days where a relationship has wavered and we are trying to figure life out. Bud's journey is our journey, and the Brown Bunny, despite using little words, conveys that well. Those who have never had a dysfunctional or soul mate-gone-wrong relationship might think this point is silly.

Third, the acting was brilliant. The immersion, off the scale. The intangibles were huge. Often the camera seemed to say a thousand words when the dialog said little. The silence spoke volumes. Sunsets, scenery and sadness.

Lastly, I walked away from the film thinking and feeling. It made me think about love, and live, and those I have yearned for but lost. I went to bed a ball of mixed emotions. Few films do this.

In the end, Brown Bunny is minimalistic with little dialog, but it is a movie well worth seeing. It makes you think, makes you feel, makes you wonder, and leaves glad you watched the film, for better or for worse. Just like Bud Clay.

I loved it. I hated it. I loved it. If you don't understand dysfunction, Bud Clay, or the movie, you won't understand why I say this.

Total Score (out of 100) = 90

47 (out of 50). Enjoyment. A rating based on my overall enjoyment of the film.
10 (out of 10). Acting. How good was the acting?
10 (out of 10). Immersion. Did the movie suck me into the story?
10 (out of 10). Intangibles. Special effects. Movie pace. Is the movie forgettable, or something you will talk about and remember for weeks? Years?
10 (out of 10). Must see. Is this movie worth seeing/renting?
3 (out of 10). Must buy. Is this movie a must buy/purchase?

Warning: This review may contain some spoilers for the uninitiated.

For those readers remotely familiar with Vincent Gallo's Buffalo 66, I need not really say much to pat the man on his back. Buffalo '66 film had layers of dark humor, lots of heart, & quirkiness to make us fall in love with his craft.

Gallo returns with a another love story of sorts but there is really no dark humor or quirkiness here whatsoever. This time around he introduces us to a lonely, lost soul by the name of Bud Clay traveling solo on the highway after just finishing a bike race. Along the way back to California, he meets three different women who all appear to be lacking what it seems he longs for. Love.

In between the meetings of these three unique women, we see many long shots of driving while hearing rather somber music while often iinclude shots of rain which prolong this deep feeling of sadness that our protagonist can't seem to shake.Thus, Brown Bunny is essentially a lugubrious ballad placed on film about the journeys we sometimes make only to find that we can never go back to what we once had. Gallo shows us how much we really want to have hope even though our heart has all but convinced us that there is literally no hope to be found.

Contrary to what reviewers have written, Brown Bunny is a very soft if not slow moving film with very tender scenes much like some of the moments in Buffalo '66. Although the ending will burn you for a long time, the film does have a tremendously huge heart & the ideas Gallo presents here will stay with you long after the final frame.

Brown Bunny itself has two basic meanings although I'm sure each viewer will pick up something totally different. Bud Clay's girlfriend left a pet bunny with her mother when she moved to California & never came back for it. My interpretation: Bud felt like he'd abandoned his love interest when she needed him the in the most crucial moments. Also, Clay had given his girlfriend a chocolate bunny for Easter which she had eaten completely (or so we learn through dialog) & thrown up shortly afterwards. In the most heartfelt dialogue between the two main characters , we learn that he kissed her anyway because he truly loved her even after she vomited.

And now the part you've been waiting for. There is a very graphic oral sex scene at the end of the film (the last ten minutes to be exact) but I personally didn't feel this took anything away from the film. The ending was intended to be very dramatic, emotional, & raw. Highly recommended!

Race race race. Kiss kiss kiss. Drive drive drive. Kiss kiss kiss. Drive drive drive. "Wanna date?" "Wanna date?" "Wanna date?" Drive drive drive. Blow blow blow. Drive. The End.

Bud is sad. The motor-cycle racer played by Vincent Gallo is carrying some sort of grief. We know this because he spends a lot of time driving his van cross country and looking unhappy. He conveys this unhappiness much of the time by rubbing his face in a way that demonstrates world-weariness. Do we know WHY he's sad? Nope, although we suspect pretty strongly it has to do with a girlfriend named Daisy.

If you want to see a movie about a sad man...here you go. We see the sad man put gas in his van. We see him purchase a cola at a roadside rest-stop...putting in about 8 coins. We get to see him drink a bit of it. We get to see him take his motorcycle out of his van and ride in on the salt flats in Utah. We even get to see him use a urinal and at one point...take a shower!! The whole shower we get to experience...and it includes a LOT of face rubbing and pausing to look contemplative.

My favorite scene involves Bud stopping at a little house in California. He goes to the door and knocks on it. He waits. Knocks again. Waits. Looks in the window. Waits. The scene takes (no exaggeration) at least two minutes. It tells us Bud can wait long past the time most of us would have given up. That's how sad he is.

Finally, near the end, Bud checks in to a hotel and we're led to understand that he may be visited by Daisy. Sure enough, she shows up and they have some dialogue (which is very exciting, because up until now we've had five minutes of dialogue stretched across 70 minutes of film). The dialogue allows us to learn some things about their relationship, and then we are able to see them kiss a lot and then Daisy (Chloe Sevigny) explicitly performs a sex act on Bud. It is graphic and not faked. It is also distinctly unappealing, because Bud berates Daisy throughout the act. When it's over, we get to finally find out what the "secret" Bud has been carrying around is. And the secret, when we understand it, is squalid, sad, and deeply uninteresting.

I hope you get some idea of the movie now before you run out to see it because you want to see two semi-well-known personalities engage in a sex act. This curiosity factor aside, there is no GOOD reason to see the film. It would only be to see for yourself just how bad a movie made by someone who actually knows how to make films can be.

Don't believe the reviewers who say their ten year old brothers could do the same. It takes a REAL ego to actually make some of the stuff that's on this film. There's a scene with a truly sad looking Cheryl Tiegs that nearly made me want to weep for her, because she is so dreadfully abused as a performer. Her part mostly consists of looking sad and then kissing Vincent Gallo for minutes on end because apparently he's just so darn irresistible. Don't believe the people who claim the film is saying something about male relationships with women and that it is some expose of how men really feel. It is simply a movie about a guy who is sad and feeling guilty and having a hard time dealing with it. Rather than tell us his story (except in the last 10 minutes) or reveal something about grief and how it can affect others, it simply shows how a person who is sad would actually look sad and move in a slow manner to suggest sadness.

It also shows a lot of boring countryside through a bug-splattered van window. Minute after endless minute of that.

And Gallo himself is supremely annoying. He has a singularly unappealing, whiny voice. In an early scene, he is exhorting a convenience store clerk to go with him to California. The dialogue is: "Go with me to California." Pause "Please." Pause "Please." Pause "Please Go With me!" He says this while staring intensely at her...so naturally she agrees to immediately throw away her life to leave with this complete stranger. And the great thing is this...his voice sounds like Alvin Chipmunk whispering. Imagine yourself throwing your life away for that!!!

I hate this movie. Chances are very, very good that you will too. I've tried to warn you.

This movie has a lot of moments that can make the viewer feel awkward or uncomfortable, with very slow pacing and, especially towards the end, with material that seems more [...] (I don't think it could have possibly been a real body part, by the way). One starts to wonder what is this all leading up to? This movie, however, needs to be seen in its entirety and then all of its parts will make sense, nothing is really done without reason; only then will the viewer realize what a masterpiece it is.

It is kind of like a retelling of Huckleberry Finn, the plot consisting of nothing more than a journey, except in this film, with the loss of childhood innocence. It is interesting to note that when the young Bud and Daisy first made their way to the wonders of California, escaping the drudgery of their life in rural Buffalo, NY, they really ended up in the same place from where they started, back to suburbia hell, except this time with palm trees and smaller houses. One can also look at this movie as a retelling of the Great Gatsby, as well.

Pay close attention to the different narrative styles. Throughout much of the film, Vincent Gallo's character is telling his story, which is really more narrated to himself than to an audience; the filming is very choppy and at times out of focus or some of the action is actually off-screen (so much so that it makes you think that Gallo just set up the camera and is actually doing all the filming himself). There's not a whole lot of talking, as he travels from one motor bike race to another. He seems almost lost, even though he knows the route. At the end of the film, when he meets up with Daisy and they talk together, for the first time we see Vincent Gallo's character and much of the action in clear focus in the full frame and there's more of a dialogue. Gallo has done an excellent and thoughful way of presenting the characters, by portraying inner and personal dialogues, feelings, thoughts, emotions that all go on inside the person versus an outside perspective, how one appears to others from the outside, that can still be revealing about a person.

I thought the female actreses were all great, especially Cheryl Tiegs and Chloe Sevigny. Gallo uses the "flower" girls/women cleverly to represent the different stages of Daisy's life, and yet shows that as a person, Daisy is irreplacable.

Gallo has made an incredible film, exploring an area of life most directors wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole, and yet affects us all, or at least some aspects of it.

This movie is hard for me to review. One of the hardest films I've ever written a review for in fact. I didn't notice Vincent Gallo until this film came out and I heard about the big Chloe Sevigny oral sex scene. I was intrigued and wanted to see this movie for a long time. Then I stumbled upon the movie 'Buffalo 66' and thought it showcased a talented filmmaker (Gallo)
and someone with enormous potential. Buffalo 66 was a movie shrouded with mystery and left you questions. It showed you a story and gave no explanation for it. So when I finally bought 'The Brown Bunny' I knew it was going to be weird. Hell, this is the movie that Roger Ebert called the worst film in the history of the Cannes Film Festival. Although he later recanted this when Gallo re-edited the movie. Well, here is 'The Brown Bunny'. Written, Produced, Directed, Edited, and Shot by Vincent Gallo. Yes, he's even the Director of Photography. This movie is odd. It's unlike anything, even 'Buffalo 66'. All the shots in the movie are way too closeup or too far away or too grainy. But that's the look of the movie, so It's OK. That's the way the movie needed to look. Then there's the storyline. This film is 92 minutes long with very little dialouge. It's almost as if someone put a camera in someone's van and just let it film them as they drove across the country. Except, there's no radio in their van. There's nothing. This movie really is dull and seemingly uninspired; but that's what Gallo wants it to be. It's not a just a movie showing us a lonely guy...It wants us to feel his loneliness. Gallo plays Bud Clay, whom we meet as he competes in a motorcycle race which he loses. He gets in his van, with the bike in the back and drives. He stops at a gas station and meets an attendant named Violet. He tells Violet he's going to California. She mentions that she's always wanted to go to California. He says "go with me". She says "I don't know you". He says "go with me".
Then she's in the car. He leaves her at her house and continues to drive.
He eventually meets a woman named Lilly. Well, kind of...He doesn't meet her. He sees her sitting on a bench looking as lonely as he does, so he sits next to her. Then he gets back in his car and drives. This is pretty much how the film goes until 75 minutes in, Bud ends up at the motel to see the love of his life Daisy (Sevigny) and we've all heard a thousand times what happens at this point. A lot of people, especially viewers but a lot of critics too, see this movie as a film maker who thought he was making a masterpiece who instead makes a boring, slow, ridiculous movie. This movie is boring, there's barely even a plot. But, as I said, that's what Gallo wants it to be. Unlike 'Buffalo 66' our questions are answered at the end of the movie for the most part...But that doesn't mean we're given a resolution. Just an explanation. Bud is a lonely guy, suffering a devastating loss and if the movie continued to follow him we'd no doubt watch Bud Clay finally committ suicide. This movie is not for everyone. This movie is not a movie you rent Friday night, kick off your shoes with some popcorn and watch. This is an art-house film that takes some tolerance from the viewer. The fact is, the most powerful scenes of the movie occur in the last 15 minutes. During and after the oral sex scene. This is not just a pointless sex scene Gallo wanted to put in to intrigue people. This scene needs to be in here, in it we see the pain of a man.
If the moments leading up to these final minutes had been more entertaining and less dull; a lot more people would like this movie. But, it's simply not so.
So, yeah. I liked this movie. In the end it becomes a beautiful and poignant film. I'm not saying you'll like it or even agree with what I've said in this review. But, this is life, love, and loneliness told in the most painstaking boring way possible. It's Vincent Gallo's "The Brown Bunny".

GRADE: B+

Oh the tedium... All that pointless driving... did we do something to mr. Gallo that we need to be punished for? And that resolution ... For cryin' out loud... such bottomless sorrow. Oh Mr. Gallo, You must be close to 40, so what's with the broken young rebel schtik? As for the infamous scene...it dunna good movie make.

I don't know....I actually really liked this movie! Is that weird? And I'm not even a big Vincent Gallo fan.

I think you just have to relax and get into it and not worry about it not having a traditional narrative structure.

It's atmospheric and beautifully shot, just a nice movie to watch.