Brothers

(2009)

Directed by

Jim Sheridan

Review by Todd Plucknett

Posted - 12/21/09

Jim Sheridan’s new film Brothers, the remake of the great 2005 Danish film by Susanne Bier of the same name, is a difficult picture. It is blessed with an amazing story, one that is particularly relevant in today’s society. It is blessed with some of the best underrated talent in the industry, but somehow it comes up short in delivering the goods. It definitely has its strengths, but the incurable problems lie in David Benioff’s substandard screenplay. It could have been one of the best films of the year, but instead, we are left with a wasted opportunity.

The story follows the Cahill family. Sam (Tobey Maguire) is a Captain in the Army who is about to be deployed again to Afghanistan. His brother is Tommy (Jake Gyllenhaal), who is in and out of jail. Sam’s wife is Grace (Natalie Portman), a wonderful woman who is left to take care of the two kids. When Sam goes missing overseas, Grace and Tommy begin to bond after previously hating each other. Sam is pronounced dead, only to return months later after life-changing events while being held captive (think The Deer Hunter-type events). When Sam returns home, he is damaged mentally and physically. He has no sense of humor, and he does not trust anyone. It is a stark and moving portrait into the effect that war has on returning soldiers.

The acting is good for the most part. The film is held together by Natalie Portman, giving one of her best performances to date. Jake Gyllenhaal gives by far his best turn in this film. Tobey Maguire was very weak and horribly miscast, however. He seemed lost throughout the movie. He looked like he didn’t belong, not just because I didn’t buy him as a high-ranking soldier. When he breaks down, I cringed, not out of being disturbed, but by how he was embarrassing himself. A better, more sensitive actor would have been a more wise choice. Joseph Gordon-Levitt maybe? Oscar nominees Sam Shepard and Mare Winningham do fine with what they were given. Breakout star of An Education Carey Mulligan provides a superb scene. The biggest surprise was Bailee Madison, giving a superb and emotional child performance.

The screenplay is the main issue here, which surprises me, due to the fact that it is the same writer (David Benioff) of the masterful screenplay of 25^th Hour, which handled somewhat similar characters flawlessly. It just does not have the intelligence of his great screenplays like that one and The Kite Runner. It falls into the weaker category populated by his cliché Wolverine, the disaster Stay, and the overrated Troy. Some of the characters are walking clichés, especially Sam Shepard’s character. I was surprised he didn’t bust out the Dewey Cox line, “Wrong kid died!” It was just so disappointing. There were also some lines that were either too obvious or just plain corny. The original did not have any of those problems. It was sincere, not melodramatic. The characters were realistic, not overdone. If I hadn’t seen that film the way it was meant to be seen, I might have bought the Sam character more, but it still wouldn’t have fit with the casting choice.

Maybe I am just not a big Jim Sheridan fan. I didn’t really care for My Left Foot for similar reasons why I wasn’t completely captivated by this picture. I liked In America a lot, though. He just doesn’t have a consistent subtle touch. In a lot of ways, it reminds me of Oliver Stone. He made his career on being blunt and unrelenting. Sheridan’s best film was a superbly-crafted family drama, yet he makes pretentious melodramas or trash like Get Rich or Die Tryin’ in between. There is a voiceover in Brothers that really draws the connection. In the final moments before the credits, Sam tells us what the movie was about, much like in Platoon. Just this time, it was beyond obvious what the film was trying to say. It was just frustrating. If not for that line, it would have ended on a completely moving and authentic moment.

If this review seems a little scattered, that’s because it is, just like the film. The Grace and Tommy characters were so interesting to follow. But then the screenplay calls for a scene in the trenches of Afghanistan to show some more terribly-acted torture scenes. Every scene with Shepard is ruined by the unimaginative writing of his character. There are some scenes that feel like a masterpiece, but there are far too many that are overdone and heavy-handed. Don’t let this mostly-critical review fool you, however. This is an entertaining film to watch. The audience will never be bored or beg for more explosive scenes. It is just the little things that went wrong, things that people who watch a lot of movies pick up on. Those things consequently made the film unstable and almost fall apart. This is a tremendous story, but the original Danish film is definitely the better one. I am not one to just immediately depreciate remakes, either. It just does a more effective and engaging job telling the story. This will be a popular picture I am sure, with the appealing cast and somewhat rewarding and pertinent subject matter. It just could have and should have been better.

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