I'm not even sure I fully understood the plot, but it's AWESOME

Almost makes your skin crawl and your stomach upset it is so realistic. The scene that depicts the main character's childhood injury is seriously haunting to me still.

Love it. Very intense movie. Great acting. Remind me a bit to Ryan Gosling's Drive.

Horrifying. Shakespearean, no, even more tragic. I bled for Jackie. Matthias is beyond superb. Dark, brooding, haunting, but well worth the watch.

I absolutely loved 'The Drop' so I figured I'd give this earlier effort by Roskam a go. In many ways you can see why he went on to make such a great film. He has all the ingredients here but doesn't quite pull them together, whereas in that later film he had a Lehane novel to work with. Many parts of this work really well, but they're mostly in isolation and don't ever quite add up to a cohesive, satisfying whole film.

Dark, gritty and affecting, 'Rundskop' is, at its core, a film about how a traumatic event from a man's childhood not only has a huge impact on who he becomes as an adult, but also changes the entire course of his life as he struggles to contain his anger and block out the past, a task that becomes impossible when it catches up with him, forcing him to confront it (bull) head on. Add to that the crime-thriller element with a smart plot, as well as great cinematography, adept direction from Roskam and a particularly intense performance from Schoenaerts, and you have yourself a film that is definitely one to watch.

Best Belgian Movie. Stop

Seen for the 3th time now , with dutch subtitles thanks ...Great performens by Matthias Schoenaerts and the rest of the Cast ...Peace of Art my Idea ! SOMDVD

Jacky is a beef farmer, he deals in illegal meat hormones and is also a steroid/hormone abuser due to a childhood assault that has left him scarred. When some Belgian gangsters assassinate a federal agent involved in investigating their illegal trade he gets more involved in the underworld than he would care for. There are way too many characters and things going on that this is a rather uneven film, there is some good acting and camera work but you couldn't take your eyes off the film for a minute in case you missed something else (a few things weren't even involved in the final outcome). A bit of a jumbled mess but shows that Roskam has a future, as shown with The Drop (an excellent film).

A bit too flat until the ending scene.

Michaël R. Roskam's story of The Belgian Mafia underworld is a devastating and shocking exploration into damaged psyches and consequences. As perceived by a man so incredibly damaged by childhood bullying and so lost in an ever-growing haze of steroid abuse that his sexual conflicts, rage and anger veer into an almost surreal nightmare. Beautifully shot by Nicolas Karakatsanis and featuring a brutally painful performance by Matthias Schoenaerts - this film is absolutely captivating from beginning to end. A unique, powerful, angry, sad, fragile and near cinematic masterpiece.

I have had this for over year but after re-watching 'The Drop' I had to dig out Michaël R. Roskam's 2012 flick. Matthias Schoenaerts is now one of my favourite actors. His performance and natural body build is quiet remarkable. It has some moments of dark humour but the main flashback scene is quiet horrific. A must see.

Disturbingly gripping film that skillfully immerses you into a very different and horrific psychological world.

A well made crime drama.

It's been a while since I watched this film, I must admit, due to technical issues with this site a while ago, but from my own memories, I remember this film just.... being there. It wasn't horrid, but nothing was memorable either. The story follows a cattle farmer that gets caught up with the Belgian mafia and the murder of a federal policeman. The farmer, Jacky, then has to confront both his past and the upcoming consequences of his decisions. While taking steroids. The cast admittedly puts in a good effort, particularly Matthias Shoenaerts in the lead role. But they were let down by a cliched and uninspiring storyline. It just feels like director Michael R. Roskam was trying too hard to get an artistic masterpiece that he lost track of what he was trying to do. The end result is pretentious and a little uninteresting. 50%

Initially starts as an atypical gangster flick on an unusual setting, with a very bleak and confusing atmosphere but quickly transforms into a deep character study of a very flawed person. A very engaging ride that still takes a few back steps, namely the out of place humor and some weak secondary characters. Also, a better pulled ending could've helped things a bit.

An interesting idea with some strong moments and often beautiful shots, hampered by its unsatisfactory execution.

Brilliant, sad and brutal drama

wow....wonderful....amazing....brilliant....i have just seen this movie 4 the 1st time n think that this is such a fantastic movie 2 watch.....its got a good cast of actors/actressess throughout this movie.....i think that Jeroen Perceval, Matthias Schoenaerts, Jeanne Dandoy, Barbara Sarafian, Tibo Vandenborre, play good roles/parts throughout this movie......i think that the director of this art house/international/drama movie had done a great job of directing this movie because you never know what 2 expect throughout this movie......i think that this is such a really tough thriller movie 2 watch....it is such a really powerful drama movie 2 watch.....i think that this is such a really well written/acted/directed movie 2 watch because you never know what 2 expect throughout this movie......i think that this is such a really compelling movie 2 watch it is such a really powerful drama movie 2 watch....... The film was selected for the panorama section of the 61st Berlin International Film Festival.It premiered in the United States at Fantastic Fest in Austin. Drafthouse Films acquired the rights to distribute the film in the United States where it opened on 17 February 2012 in a limited release i think that Matthias Schoenaerts, was absolutley fantastic throughout this movie in the lead role as he is such a good actor, The film is based on the murder of Karel van Noppen. i think that this is such a fantastic thriller movie it is such a really powerful drama movie 2 watch it is such a fantastically well written/acted/directed movie 2 watch.....its got a great cast throughout this movie......its got a good soundtrack throughout this movie......its got good fight scenes throughout this movie.....i think that this is a fantastic art house movie 2 watch it is such a really powerful drama movie 2 watch its such a brilliant movie 2 watch......

Beautifully crafted and directed, Bullhead is a stirring Belgian drama anchored by a strong central performance. The trouble with the film is in its material, which presents several ideas that lack wisdom. By giving Jacky (a riveting Schoenaerts) such a traumatizing past, the film pretends to claim that his violent conduct as an adult is unavoidable, which leaves out all semblance of choice and free will. And what we're left with is a brutal statement of nihilistic humanism. In the character of Jacky, the filmmakers provide both a protagonist and an antagonist, a victim and a perpetrator. Should we feel sorry for him or despise him? Even the filmmakers don't seem to know, and therein lies the real tragedy.