Movie Review: Rian Johnson's Brick (2005)

Just saw this really good movie called Brick. It's like a film noir (Think The Maltese Falcon or Chinatown) set in a modern California high school. It starts with a note dropped in a locker. The note leads to a pay phone, where our protagonist, Brendan, gets a phone call from his ex-girlfriend, Emily. She's scared, and she won't say why, only sobs out some words like bad brick . . . Tug . . . poor Frisco . . . the Pin. What do these words mean?

Brendan goes back to school, where he hasn't shown up for months and talks to Brain, who is the eyes and ears of the school. He doesn't fit in with any clique, but he knows everyone and everything that goes down. Brendan is a stand up guy. He doesn't want to get back together with Em, but she asked for his help so . . .

So starts a search for the truth that will have Twin Peaks and film noir fans drooling. To get to the truth, Brendan will have to use all of his connections, both positive and negative, to navigate this course. We meet school administrators, druggies, brainiacs, jocks, drama geeks, and drug lords that will all help solve the mystery. And of course, we meet the femme fatale who will maybe or maybe not end up being who she seems to be. You will be guessing until the end. The movie was loads of fun.