[Review] Brightburn (2019)

Brightburn – After a difficult struggle with fertility, Tori Breyer’s dreams of motherhood come true with the arrival of a mysterious baby boy. Brandon appears to be everything Tori and her husband, Kyle, ever wanted – bright, talented and curious about the world. But as Brandon nears puberty, powerful darkness manifests within him, and Tori becomes consumed by terrible doubts about her son. Once Brandon begins to act on his twisted urges, those closest to him find themselves in grave danger.

I’ve been waiting for this movie after seeing a very interesting trailer for it a few months ago. I had hoped for something new and fresh and thankfully this movie delivered that and more. Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s Brightburn! Most everyone is familiar with the story of Superman, the infant boy who had been found inside of a meteor and grew up to develop superpowers. Powers such as laser coming out of his eyes, super speed, amazing strength…powers that gave him not only flight but made him invincible as well.

And now, finally, we have a superhero movie for adults, one not candy-coated. This movie was more horror-drama-thriller instead of sci-fi and superheroes. This is not a tragic story of good becoming evil or the reluctant descent of a hero into a villain. This is a story of a terrible force triumphing over compassionate nurture, and of how evil can simply win. All in all, it’s a story of a true sociopath-super-villain, one so very unhinged and unleashed. In this day and age where superhero movies almost always completely reign unchallenged in the science-fiction genre, Brightburn brings a fresh wind to the film industry.

Tori Breyer (Elizabeth Banks) and her husband, Kyle (David Denman) live in Brightburn Kansas and have been trying to have a child of their own for years. One night a bright object comes roaring from the sky and crashes nearby their farm, almost right in their back yard and an unearthly child is delivered to them. Tori finds a sweet infant boy in this comet or spacecraft. They instantly adopt him, naming him Brandon (Jackson A. Dunn). Everyone is now living a life of peace and love, or so you think. One day Brandon realizes that something is seriously wrong with him when he tries to start a lawnmower that just won’t cooperate, so he gets angry and suddenly the thing ends up in the neighbors, several houses away.

(2019) Brightburn – Movie Still

Brandon’s parents immediately tell young Superman to keep his growing powers under control and only use them to help humans. This works for a while but the concept really starts to get boring for him and starts to deviate substantially from the plan. Brandon wanders around the farm at night looking for something that seems to call out to him, and it becomes clear that a constructive parent-child conversation is not really useful. If Brandon feels disadvantaged in any way, it’s best to stay away from him. The consequences of a tantrum could be disastrous and you could end up being thrown into a wall or have your head crushed as a result. So they are stuck with a teenage son with issues who has superpowers. I won’t say anymore, but you don’t have to be a genius to know where things are going to go next.

(2019) Brightburn – Movie Still

To me, Brightburn was a very good film. Straight forward, easy to follow and incredibly entertaining. The pace was perfect for a nearly 1 hour and a half movie, and the gore and violence was quite good, never really over the top, and that eye impalement scene with the glass was squirmingly well made! All of the effects were done well and were very realistic. The acting was amazingly good for what it was, as with the actors for the roles they were given. Great job everyone! Overall, this was a truly great superhero horror film that I can highly recommend watching. This is no doubt going to be a movie that is a ‘must purchase’ for me, just as soon as it becomes available in fact!

Title: Brightburn
Release Date: May 24, 2019
Runtime: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Genre: Horror, Science Fiction, Action, Suspense
Studio: Screen Gems
Starring: Elizabeth Banks, David Denman, Jackson Dunn
MPAA Rated: R
Director(s): David Yarovesky
Reviewed by: Mike Davidson
Our Rating: 3.8 /5

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