He is also a writer. I'm probably the last person to realize this, and you can just keep your disparaging comments to yourself.
But go read his article in The Guardian where he assesses the UK riots and comes up with a shocking conclusion:
If we want to live in a society where people feel included, we must include them, where they feel represented, we must represent them and where they feel love and compassion for their communities then we, the members of that community, must find love and compassion for them.
Why am I surprised that these young people behave destructively, "mindlessly", motivated only by self-interest? How should we describe the actions of the city bankers who brought our economy to its knees in 2010? Altruistic? Mindful? Kind? But then again, they do wear suits, so they deserve to be bailed out, perhaps that's why not one of them has been imprisoned. And they got away with a lot more than a few fucking pairs of trainers.
These young people have no sense of community because they haven't been given one. They have no stake in society because Cameron's mentor Margaret Thatcher told us there's no such thing.
If we don't want our young people to tear apart our communities then don't let people in power tear apart the values that hold our communities together.
Honestly I didn't know a thing about Brand before this, except that he also wrote a piece memorializing Amy Winehouse that I thought was beautiful. I haven't seen any of his movies. But the guy knows a thing or two about social commentary. It's always been the court jester who can say the truth.
Maybe we are at a turning point. Maybe we are at the place where people are going to be willing to talk honestly about what we have become. Good lord, I hope so. Anyway, I'm going to go look up some Russell Brand movies. I hope they come up to his writing ability.