Cut Off Game 

‘Bruiser’ is an intense drama that explores unresolved childhood trauma and how it can affect the people around us. ‘Malcolm’ (Shamier Anderson) and ‘Porter’ (Trevante Rhodes) are locked in a 15 year long rage that spills over into the life of ‘Darious’ (Jalyn Hall), the stepson and biological son of the two men, respectively.

Overcome with disappointment and resentment fueled by his dysfunctional relationship with his own father, ‘Malcolm’ is less than amenable to the idea of ‘Porter’, his childhood running buddy, re-connecting with ‘Darious’. After a familial meet-cute, ‘Darious’ begins a friendship with ‘Porter’ unaware of the paternal connection.

What begins as a positive and even healing experience for ‘Darious’, these interactions quickly devolve into a nightmarish spiral of bad decisions triggered by ‘Malcolm’s’ seething, violent hatred for ‘Porter. In his mind, ‘Porter’ abandoning ‘Darious’ as an infant after exhibiting some disturbing behavior, has permanently disqualified him from ever having a relationship with his son. ‘Malcolm’ also reveals some harsh judgments against ‘Porter’ that he has been stewing in based on their shared childhood experiences.

Overall, ‘Bruiser’ is a watchable project with great performances all-around. The musical direction is a masterclass on how to use the score to drive the tenor(pun intended) of a film. The haunting sounds perfectly match what the viewer is seeing. The cinematography was also exceptional.