Bradley Thomas (Vince Vaughn) is a former boxer who’s just been fired from his job at a repair garage. On the same day he’s fired, he discovers his wife, Lauren (Dexter‘s Jennifer Carpenter), has been cheating on him. After destroying her car with his bare hands in a violent rage, Bradley calmly decides to call his friend Gil (Marc Blucas,) a drug dealer, and ask for a job.
Eighteen months later, Bradley and Lauren are better off financially and romantically. Living in a nice house, the couple is expecting a baby girl. Gil introduces Bradley to some potential new partners who have connections in Mexico. When a deal with these new partners goes sour and ends in a shootout with police, Bradley finds himself sentenced to seven years in prison.
Lauren, left to fend for herself at home, is kidnapped and a mysterious man (Udo Kier) contacts Bradley to offer him a deal. If Bradley can settle a debt with this man’s employer, Lauren and the unborn baby go free. Unfortunately for Bradley, paying this debt will lead to some difficult and violent situations.
I’m being purposefully vague with some of the details so as not to spoil much of the plot. I decided to watch this movie after hearing good things about it from multiple people. But, going in, I didn’t know anything about it other than Vince Vaughn, normally cast in comedic material like Dodgeball and Old School, delivers an intense performance. The surprise of not knowing what would happen was one reason I think I enjoyed it as much as I did.
Brawl in Cell Block 99 is a throwback to the grindhouse movies from the 1970s. It’s gritty, violent, and consciously over-the-top in places. Written and directed by S. Craig Zahler (Bone Tomahawk), the script is snappy and allows us to get to know Bradley well enough to understand his rage. A story that Bradley tells Lauren about coffee creamer at the beginning of the movie illustrates Zahler’s wit. There’s also plenty of bone-cracking, face-destroying violence that will satisfy genre fans and keep less tolerant viewers reaching for a barf bag.
Vince Vaughn’s performance is the keystone of the film. Usually known for his quick fire comedic repartee, here he is more reserved, mostly silent but with an occasional sharp-witted barb delivered in a Southern drawl. His character is driven by a primal instinct to do what’s right given the circumstances and Vaughn is an unexpectedly solid choice for the role. Seeing the man who once played Santa Claus’ brother, Fred, savagely beat multiple people is a jolt to the system.
The supporting cast is also worth mentioning, especially Don Johnson as a sadistic prison warden and Udo Kier as the appropriately named Placid Man.
The only problem I had with the movie is that it takes over an hour to set everything up but then seems to rush through the events in the second half. It’s a minor issue that doesn’t really affect things but it does make the pacing of the film seem a bit unbalanced.
Brawl in Cell Block 99 is an unexpectedly entertaining and unapologetically violent film that’s worth seeing for the strength of Vince Vaughn’s performance.
4.0 out of 5.0 stars
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