BRUTAL centers on Trevor (Morgan Benoit), abducted from his backyard at the age of fifteen by an unseen alien presence. Forced into nearly two decades of no-holds-barred fights against other abductees inside an unearthly mixed martial arts arena, Trevor has evolved from an innocent boy into a brutal fighting machine. Derek, (Jeff Hatch) an ambulance chasing lawyer, is the latest lab-rat abductee forced to fight Trevor. As the two men exchange ever-increasing beating over the course of weeks and months, the brutality of their existence and the true nature of their humanity is slowly revealed. With elements of THE TWILIGHT ZONE and THE PRISONER, BRUTAL explores through science fiction, allegory and psychological drama, man’s violent nature and our propensity to commit unthinkable acts of violence against each other. Yet through this prism of brutality our capacity to love one another, even in the worst of circumstances is celebrated.
Practical Effects
Raw, unglamorous fight choreography that actually hurts to watch.
Acting
Morgan Benoit's physical transformation carries the whole film.
Director
Donald Lawrence Flaherty
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Morgan Benoit performed most of his own stunts despite having no formal martial arts background before filming. The bruises are largely real.
The film's $50,000 budget forced the 'alien arena' to be essentially a warehouse with colored lights, making the claustrophobia accidentally more effective.
US
