Movie Fodder

Release Year: 2009

Director: Jim Sheridan

Review: 'Brothers' is a surprisingly restrained, thoughtful and moving examination of the effects of war on soldiers returning home to their families and the stresses that it puts on their relationships.  Capt. Sam Cahil (Toby Maguire) is believed to have been killed in combat which is devastating enough, but extra tension is applied when his degenerate brother begins to take his place in his family in his absence.  The complexity and severity of the emotional turmoil this situation causes when Sam is found to be alive, creates a fascinating look at a man desperately trying to put his life back together under overwhelmingly difficult circumstances. 

There is a lot of plot, and emotional, evolution that must take place in a short amount of time.  Considering this obstacle, the film does a fairly decent job in creating a believably complicated tangle of emotion.  Sam's brother Tommy(Jake Gyllenhaal) has a huge gap to bridge in his characters development, going from an isolated, selfish, drunk to a caring, well adjusted part of the family.  There are some pacing issues, but they are forgivable given the payoff.  The conflict between the brothers isn't what this movie is about despite what the trailer would have you believe.  It certainly plays a part in the anguish and challenges of Sam, but this is about a man suffering with his own inner demons and the family dynamic of dealing with a major conflict.  This is by far the more interesting story, and one that makes this film worth watching.  I do feel too much time was wasted with setup, but ultimately it may have been needed for a few of the later, most powerful, scenes to work.

In a film all about emotional distress, acting is key.  Fortunately 'Brothers' delivers.  The acting is superb.  The three main players, Natalie Protman, Jake Gyllenhaal and Toby Macguire, all give performances of their careers.  Macguire may outshine them all with a restrained performance, which allows the moment of emotional release pop all that much more when he unleashes his emotion.  The acting is the key component that kept this film from falling over the edge into an uncomfortable abyss of melodrama. 

'Brothers' was a surprising film in that it could have easily been an uninspired, overly dramatic, foray into jealousy, but instead is an intricately woven tapestry of emotional complexity.  Its an intense portrait of a soldier dealing with the horrors of war and a family trying to save itself.  There are absolutely gut wrenching scenes which push this into a higher caliber of film than the standard dramatic fluff, and make it well worth the watch.
Rating: 4/5

Award Consideration: The main Oscar buzz surrounding this film is the acting.  The acting is the glue that holds this film together.  Oddly enough, the one that has the best chance at actually generating a nomination is probably the lesser of the trio, in Natalie Portman.  This is not a knock on her performance.  It is great.  She is holds together a women falling apart emotionally.  A part that could have easily been over played.  She might be deserving of a nomination, but her chances of winning are slim.  I can think of at least two performances that are more deserving.

The two male leads, Gylenhaal and Maguire both give great performances.  If I were to nominate one, I'd give the slight edge to Maguire, since his performance required more restraint.  However, they are both in a tough category, and I just can't see them sneaking in past some other great actors.  They are fantastic performances, but there are just those that are better.

Finally, the film has an outside chance at nabbing a best picture nod.  With the expanded nominee list it might be the perfect movie to catch one of the new nominations.  It is mainstream which will allow the audience to relate more to the films nominated and its a good film to boot.  I wouldn't be too shocked to see it in there, but a win would be a surprise and certainly not deserved.