Eye Candy #37 - "Bronson"

Bronson: A biopic about Charlie Bronson, “Britain’s most violent prisoner”, known for spending much of his life in prison (34 years), and most of that time in solitary confinement (30 years). I knew nothing about him prior to this film being released, but then I read that during one of his 12 prison hostage-takings, his demands included an “inflatable doll, a helicopter, and a cup of tea”. In another incident, he threatened to eat a hostage if his demands weren’t met. So I just knew I had to check this out. What we learn about Charlie is that if someone can actually be born bad, Charlie Bronson is that guy and he’s been a sociopath from childhood. Shuttled from prison to mental institution to prison some 122 times, Bronson is concerned mostly with being famous and the outrageous behavior that feeds his notoriety. A bit of Stone Cold Steve Austin, a dollop of Jack Nicholson, and a heaping tablespoon of Tazmanian devil, he’s Chev Chelios from the “Crank” movies come to life. Some complain that the movie glamorizes Bronson and his hijinks. I think it makes a mockery of him, a person who somehow managed to fail at just about everything he tried except being a prison hard a$$. And like the fella says, go with what you know. He’s a caged animal incapable of functioning in normal society. This film is a blacker than black comedy, with Tom Hardy giving a bravura performance as Charlie Bronson while obviously having a lot of fun with his moustache, often with full frontal nudity. Not for all tastes, but I enjoyed it. Woodchuck sez, “Check it out.”