Joseph Gordon-Levitt: 5 Awesome Roles And 5 That Sucked

2. Brendan - Brick

Brick is one of the more unusual genre mash-ups; combining a coming of age high school drama with a hard-boiled detective thriller. Levitt shines in the role of an outcast teen trying to uncover the mystery behind his girlfriend€™s death, and take down her killer. It's an odd film that could have been a total mess, but thanks largely to the writing and performances it became an indie gem. The acclaim for Levitt is well earned; he's able to portray the inner strength of the character alongside the vulnerability. He could have been played as a nerdy weakling, but the actor gives Brendan an inner strength that makes it believable as he keeps pushing forward. The tragic parts of the story hinge on Brendan learns things about his girlfriend he never knew, and the one question that haunts him is finding out if she ever truly loved him or not. The answer is ambiguous, and Levitt plays the moment perfectly when it arrives.