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Review

DETACHMENT. Adrien Brody in a Haunting, Emotional Film

Witness the mesmerizing authenticity of Adrien Brody in Detachment, a film filled with flawed characters seeking connection.

EDITORIAL team

4 February 2025

detachment

It’s difficult for me to review, assess, or even simply recommend Detachment, the latest film from the director of the acclaimed American History X. This is a movie that can be painful to watch, depressive, and even pretentious. At the same time, it is powerful, emotional, and brutally honest in what it conveys.

Henry Barthes (the phenomenal Adrien Brody) is a teacher, but he is far from John Keating in Dead Poets Society. He is not the charming Robin Williams playing the ideal educator. Henry is a substitute teacher, always working part-time. This is intentional—he avoids forming attachments to his students and never stays in one place for too long. He tries to keep his distance. But this is only an illusion—he is intense and desperately seeks connection.

detachment

Although Henry is the central character, he is not the only one in this drama. We follow other teachers and staff at the school where Barthes is currently working. Like him, they are all wounded, living in a state of detachment—from the world and from themselves. Most of them struggle to handle their own lives, let alone guide their students. Don’t get me wrong—this is a critique of the system, not the teachers. The system is flawed. The system is restrictive. And the characters struggle against it. They fight to instill something meaningful in their students. They try to connect with perpetually absent parents. They battle their own weaknesses. It’s easy to see that the script was written by a former teacher (Carl Lund). It feels like a deeply personal reckoning with the education system and absentee parenting.

The film itself is much like the characters it portrays—imperfect, filled with flaws. But at the same time, it brims with raw passion, enough to fuel multiple films, books, or music albums. It is chaotic, desperate to communicate its emotions with brutal honesty.

This (controlled) chaos is most evident in the film’s form, which is difficult to even describe. Adrien Brody speaks directly to the camera about the struggles of teaching. Cut. He recalls his childhood—blurry, painted in harsh, aggressive colors. Cut. We see short animated sequences, drawings on a chalkboard. Cut. Bryan Cranston (in a fantastic cameo) hurls a vase in slow motion. The vase shatters in slow motion. Cut. A school counselor yells at a student. Cut. A licensed song plays, and suddenly, the film turns into a music video. Cut. Empty school hallways filled with abandoned books. Cut. Adrien Brody sits alone in a ruined, empty classroom.

detachment

Though the film’s style is bold and sometimes excessive, it always serves the script. Every scene—sometimes pretentious, no matter how stylized—deepens the story and heightens the emotions. Despite its title, this is not a film one can watch indifferently. You may love it or hate it, but it will always provoke a reaction. It looms over the viewer, consumes them, and refuses to be forgotten.

Detachment wouldn’t be nearly as impactful without its cast. Adrien Brody, in particular, holds everything together, playing a character as unstable as the film itself. He cries, explodes in rage, yells, throws chairs in the classroom. A character that could have easily been overacted and artificial is, in Brody’s hands, always authentic and mesmerizing. But the supporting cast is equally strong—Marcia Gay Harden, James Caan, and newcomer Sami Gayle all deliver compelling performances. Every character is distinct, well-defined, and excellently portrayed.

This is a powerful film, suitable for both younger and older audiences—for students, teachers, and parents alike. It is an intense, piercing cinematic experience—bitter and depressive, yet with a glimmer of hope at the end. Beneath it all lies a profound beauty, masterful direction, and raw, sincere emotion. Detachment is not a film that will appeal to everyone—it’s one of those works that divides audiences and critics alike. But that doesn’t change the fact that it’s a must-watch, if only to form your own opinion.

EDITORIAL team

EDITORIAL team

We're movie lovers who write for other movie lovers!

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