Motherless Brooklyn (2019)

Directed by: Edward Norton | 145 minutes | crime, drama | Actors: Edward Norton, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Alec Baldwin, Bobby Cannavale, Willem Dafoe, Bruce Willis, Ethan Suplee, Cherry Jones, Dallas Roberts, Josh Pais, Radu Spinghel, Fisher Stevens, Peter Gray Lewis

In 1999, Edward Norton bought the rights to the book Motherless Brooklyn from author Jonathan Lethem. It took almost 20 years before the book could finally be made into a movie. The film is a true passion project for Norton, as the actor plays no fewer than four roles here – as director, screenwriter, producer and lead actor. While the book was originally set in the 1990s, Norton believed his film adaptation would lend itself better to 1950s New York. Lethem himself had no objection to this adaptation of his work, but some of his fans saw this as a gross distortion of the book. However, Norton’s own love for the story is undeniable: the actor has put his heart and soul into this film adaptation.

‘Motherless Brooklyn’ follows Lionel Essrog (Edward Norton), a lonely private detective with Tourette syndrome. Lionel works in 1950s New York for the detective agency of his friend and mentor Frank Minna (Bruce Willis). When Frank is suddenly killed in a case, Lionel decides to find those responsible. Since Frank hasn’t told anyone what he was working on, Lionel faces a difficult task. His search eventually leads him to Moses Randolph (Alec Baldwin), a powerful building contractor who wants to make his vision of New York come true. The closer he gets to solving the case, the greater the danger of being attacked by the evil figures protecting Randolph.

Edward Norton has gathered a very talented cast and crew for ‘Motherless Brooklyn’. First and foremost, there will be a parade of acting talent, such as Bruce Willis, Alec Baldwin, Willem Dafoe, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Bobby Cannavale, Fisher Stevens, Ethan Suplee and Michael Kenneth Williams. Many of the actors only appear in a few scenes, but they still manage to create memorable characters. Norton also manages to impress with his own role as Lionel. His performance as the private detective is both moving and humorous. Playing a character with Gilles de la Tourette is no easy task, but Norton seems to have no problem with this. He shows once again why he is one of the best actors of his generation.

The music by composer Daniel Pemberton also supports the film well. The convincing atmosphere and zeitgeist that the film evokes is partly created by this original music. The same goes for Radiohead’s Thom Yorke’s song ‘Daily Battles’. This is anything but a typical 50s song, but it is a song that fits well with the despondent mood of the city and its inhabitants, especially Lionel.

It’s a shame that despite the acting and music there are a few things to criticize about ‘Motherless Brooklyn’. For example, the film is on the long side at 144 minutes and the script is sometimes unnecessarily confused. The story doesn’t quite come together at some points, largely because of the slow pace at which the film moves. About twenty minutes of the running time could have been shaved off and the story wouldn’t have suffered. An argument can also be made that the climax of the film is inferior to the initial set-up of the story. For a long-running film like this, the climax is somewhat half-hearted.

Still, the positives of ‘Motherless Brooklyn’ outweigh the negatives, mainly because of Norton’s obvious passion and love for the story. This is the kind of movie we rarely get to see these days. Not because of the lack of creative talent like Norton, but simply because movie studios aren’t interested in projects like this anymore. ‘Motherless Brooklyn’ certainly has its weaknesses, but because of its ambition it is nevertheless a film that deserves to be seen.