“I did come into this world as Michael Peterson but I’ll go out with my fighting name”
“Charles Bronson” (Tom Hardy) Long before terrorising Gotham City as Batman’s nemesis “Bane” in Christopher Nolan’s epic re-imaging of the caped crusading Batman, a stunning performance in John Hillcoat’s criminally ignored Lawless and teaming up again with Christopher Nolan for the wonderful Inception, Tom Hardy shook the cinema screen with his portrayal of “Britain’s Most Violent Prisoner”, Charles Bronson. Born Michael Peterson, he soon took the moniker of Charles Bronson in prison but has now, as recently as this year (at the time of writing!) changed his name again, in deference to his favourite artist, to Charles Salvador. Hardy was obsessed with the tales and folklore of Charles Bronson growing up and together with two visits to meet the man himself, he was the obvious and only candidate to bring him to life on the big screen. In this often violent and dark twisted tale of his life, Hardy is pitch perfect in his portrayal of Bronson. His gait, walking style and especially the intonations in his fractured speech are sublime character acting of the highest regard, as is the frightening way he switches from his manic smile and laugh to an utterly threatening snarl.
Spending just 69 days in the outside world since his original incarceration it is here that Hardy excels, portraying a slow, socially awkward and on edge character that the world left behind long ago. But naturally the prison scenes dominate, with Hardy constantly bloodied and bruised or stalking his cell like a caged lion in a truly shocking portrayal of a man who always wanted to be famous. Always notorious and forever in the public consciousness, countless books and this film later, Charles Salvador nee Bronson may now have that fame.
Written by director Nicolas Winding Refn and Brock Norman Brock, the narrative of Charles Bronson’s life story is told in three very distinctive ways, weaving a narration from Hardy as Bronson together with straight to camera narration from Bronson dressed in a blue prison uniform and a third more surrealistic strand as Bronson the showman and celebrity he wishes to be performs on a stage in front of an audience as he narrates the story of his life. Here he is dressed in a standard civilian black suit but often with his face painted in a mock court jester style. These distinctive styles of story telling blend with Bronson’s childhood and his years through various prisons and mental institutions and is reminiscent of Andrew Dominik’s 2000 tale of Chopper, with both films weaving bloody and brutal violence with dark humour and a dark blend of surrealism.
Aside from the violence, which is shocking and brutal but nowhere near the level I remembered seeing on first viewing, the film’s true stand out scenes are when Bronson is on stage, playing to the crowd and recounting his life story. This is exemplified by the self titled “Charlie versus Broadmoor” with Bronson singing and dancing his way through actual stock footage of his rooftop vigils being projected on the screen behind him. A further stand out scene is clearly a nod to One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest and is tragically portrayed until “It’s a Sin” by The Pet Shop Boys is played. A stellar performance from Tom Hardy is supported by Matt King as fellow inmate “Paul”, Amanda Burton as “Mum” and Hugh Ross as “Uncle Jack”.
As at the time of writing, Charles Bronson has spent 34 years in prison, 30 years in solitary confinement and only 69 days as a free man. He remains in Woodhill prison to this day, changing his name regularly but with no sign of parole.
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If he'd known what Bronson's surname at birth was, the film would have been called "Buchinsky".