Adrien Brody says take the time to reflect, Felicity Jones proposes a cup of tea, Guy Pearce thinks a popcorn run could work while Brady Corbet suggests a quick romp in the restroom.
It’s been decades since American moviegoers have had the opportunity of experiencing an intermission but Brady Corbet and his The Brutalist will smash that dormant tradition when the A24 epic hits theaters on Dec. 20. A 15-minute break divides the film’s two chapters, “The Enigma of Arrival” and “The Hard Core of Beauty,” and brings the film’s total running time to three hours and 35 minutes.
The Brutalist stars Adrien Brody as László Tóth, a Jewish Hungarian architect who is attempting to rebuild his life in the United States after the Holocaust. Felicity Jones (as Tóth’s wife Erzsébet Tóth), Alessandro Nivola (as Tóth’s cousin Attila), Guy Pearce (as the wealthy Harrison Lee Van Buren Sr.), Joe Alwyn (as Harry Lee), and Isaach De Bankolé (as Tóth’s unlikely pal) round out the cast.
New opportunity begs a new question: What should the audience do with their mid-movie free time? The Hollywood Reporter asked The Brutalist’s brain trust for a little advice at the film’s recent Los Angeles premiere, and the answers may surprise you.
“The beauty is you have a moment to reflect. Or go to the restroom, get a piece of candy — whatever you’d like. I find that it’s a moment to sit there in the silence and darkness with an image that’s evocative while you contemplate a chapter and let it sink in before a new chapter unfolds. It’s quite special and beautiful, and it makes the experience feel like an event, especially in a theater.”
“You have a variety of options. You can have a cup of tea, you can have a cigarette, you can have a drink, you can have a chat with the person you’re watching it with. Right now, I think people are really desperate for a proper story. In this world of obsessive, short-form content, it’s actually incredibly relaxing to watch something that captivates you for such a long time.”
Adrien Brody
Adrien Brody attends the Los Angeles premiere of A24’s ‘The Brutalist’ at Vista Theatre on Dec. 5, 2024.
Credit: Eric Charbonneau/A24 via Getty Images
“The beauty is you have a moment to reflect. Or go to the restroom, get a piece of candy — whatever you’d like. I find that it’s a moment to sit there in the silence and darkness with an image that’s evocative while you contemplate a chapter and let it sink in before a new chapter unfolds. It’s quite special and beautiful, and it makes the experience feel like an event, especially in a theater.”
Felicity Jones
Felicity Jones attends the Los Angeles premiere of A24’s ‘The Brutalist’ at Vista Theatre on Dec. 5, 2024.
Credit: Eric Charbonneau/A24 via Getty Images
“You have a variety of options. You can have a cup of tea, you can have a cigarette, you can have a drink, you can have a chat with the person you’re watching it with. Right now, I think people are really desperate for a proper story. In this world of obsessive, short-form content, it’s actually incredibly relaxing to watch something that captivates you for such a long time.”
Guy Pearce
Guy Pearce attends the Los Angeles premiere of A24’s ‘The Brutalist’ at Vista Theatre on Dec. 5, 2024.
Credit: Eric Charbonneau/A24 via Getty Images
“Go to the bathroom, have a little chat about what you’ve observed in the first half, and then maybe get another little serving of popcorn or something. But don’t be too late going back in for the second half.”