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Brothers: Movie Review

Krystal Clark — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 03:00:19 +0000

Master story teller Jim Sheridan has brought us an English language adaptation of the 2004 Danish film Brødre. In Brothers, the director who’s known for his work on My Left Foot and In America, decides to tackle the effects of war on the relationships of a tight knit family. Tobey Maguire, Natalie Portman, and Jake Gyllenhaal lead the cast in this eye opening tale about death, love, and betrayal.

Check out our review below…

The Players:

Director: Jim Sheridan
Writer: David Benioff, Susanne Bier and Aders Thomas Jensen (Brødre)
Cast: Tobey Maguire, Natalie Portman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Sam Shepard, Mare Winningham, Clifton Collins Jr.

The Plot:

Brothers centers on a military family led by Sam and Grace Cahill (Maguire and Portman), high school sweethearts who are the parents of two young daughters. Sam is the older brother of Tommy, an ex-con who’s been recently released from prison. When Sam’s shipped out for another tour in Afghanistan his helicopter is shot down while on duty. The family is notified of his death, causing Grace and Tommy to pick up the pieces in the aftermath. While trying to heal, the unlikely pair develop a close relationship, which causes a rift when Sam unexpectedly returns. He’s a changed man, suffering from post traumatic stress disorder and unable to communicate the horror he saw overseas.

The Good:

Tobey Maguire: It’s hard to think of Maguire as a threatening force, but his portrayal of Sam Cahill was terrifying and unnerving. His reenactment of a soldier suffering from post traumatic stress disorder was very honest and real.
The Love Triangle: Unlike most films that have this type of underlying love story, it doesn’t lay it on thick. There is a brewing connection between Grace and Tommy but it’s not the main focus of the film.
Cinematography: A lot of the war scenes, especially the parts that took place in captivity were shot in a documentary style. They had a raw, edginess to them that made you feel as if you were watching the footage on CNN and not in a theater.
Bailee Madison: Both young actresses were on their game, but the youngest daughter in particular is talented beyond her years. Madison showed a range of emotion from a child that you wouldn’t expect someone of her age to understand let alone project.

The Bad:

Screenplay: The script for Brothers makes you think while you’re in the theater, but once the film is over it leaves you. There’s no lasting effect from the events that take place within the story. It’s not generic, but it’s not overtly unique either.
Clifton Collins Jr: Collins played Sam’s superior officer and his part was very cut and dry. His character is used to progress the military aspect of the story, but whenever he’s onscreen he doesn’t capture your attention. His part is very one dimensional and could have been played by anybody.

Overall:

Brothers is an honest look at a family dealing with the after effects of war. It highlights the strain it puts on relationships and how it severs connections that were once strong. It will definitely make you think, but it’s not a life altering film.

Brothers hits theaters everywhere on December 4, 2009.

Rating: 7/10

Trailer:

Official Brothers Poster Proves that Three is a Crowd

Krystal Clark — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 00:45:58 +0000

Last week we posted the first trailer to the Jim Sheridan drama Brothers. The film is a remake of the 2004 film by Susanne Bier entitled, Brodre. In this English language version, Tobey Maguire, Natalie Portman, and Jake Gyllenhaal find themselves in an unexpected love triangle. The film centers on a young wife and mother (Portman) trying to put her life back together after her husband (Maguire) goes missing in Afghanistan. With the help of his younger brother (Gyllenhaal) things begin to fall back in place, that is until her husband makes a surprise return from the presumed dead.

View the full poster after the jump.

Image courtesy of Cinematical.

There are so many things wrong with this picture. Tobey Maguire’s emaciated frame, paired with Jake’s voyeuristic gaze, and Natalie’s oblivious to both. I rarely say this, but I love everyone in the main cast of this film. I’m a fan of all of their work, and unlike a lot of other young Hollywood actors they can actually…act. Brothers will be released in theaters on December 4 of this year.

What do you think of the first official poster for Brothers?

Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal Brothers Trailer

Krystal Clark — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 23:00:00 +0000

Honestly, how many of us all felt that Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal needed to play brothers in a movie? The team up was bound to happen and it did at the hands of director Jim Sheridan. Brothers is the aptly titled film about a young wife and mother (Natalie Portman), who tries to put her life back together after her husband (Maguire) goes missing in Afghanistan. With the help of his younger brother (Gyllenhaal) things begin to fall back in place, that is until her husband makes a surprise return from the presumed dead!

Check out the trailer for Brothers after the jump.

I have to admit I’m kind of disappointed that they showed the “dead” soldier return in the trailer. That would have been a great twist in the film. This cast is ridiculously strong, and Gyllenhaal and Maguire are beyond believable as siblings.

What do you think of the trailer for Brothers?

Warner Brothers Settles With Fox

Krystal Clark — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 18:11:43 +0000

It’s official, the wait is over! Warner Brothers and 20th Century Fox have managed to reach a settlement over the live action adaptation of the DC graphic novel, Watchmen. If you’ve been following the drama that’s been surrounding these two, you know what’s been on the line in terms of the success and future of the film. Warner Brothers has been in a legal battle with Fox since early last year, over the Watchmen’s distribution rights. Fox had obtained the rights to the film in the mid-eighties, but signed a turnaround deal with producer Larry Gordon that gave him partial rights to the property, and the freedom to shop the film around to other studios. Enter Warner Brothers, Zack Snyder, and a whole lot of drama.

Check out the specifics of the settlement after the jump.

According to Fox they contacted Warner Brothers before production on Watchmen began, telling them that they still had claim on the properties film rights. Warner ignored the demands, went ahead as scheduled, and began a whirlwind marketing campaign for their film. Fox then went to the courts where it was ruled by a U.S. District Court Judge, that Fox did indeed hold a valid interest in the film.

Over the past couple of days, both studio’s have had meetings behind closed doors, which sparked talks of a settlement. Then to further hopes that the end was near, a scheduled conference for this past Tuesday between the studios was cancelled. This was a positive sign that Warner and Fox might settle the dispute amongst themselves, without having to go to trial.

According to Variety, Watchmen will be released on March 6, 2009 as planned, and will still be distributed by Warner Brothers.

Fox, on the other hand, will emerge with an upfront cash payment that sources pegged between $5 million and $10 million, covering reimbursement of $1.4 million the studio invested in development fees, and also millions of dollars in legal fees incurred during the case.

More importantly, Fox will get a gross participation in “Watchmen” that scales between 5% and 8.5%, depending on the film’s worldwide revenues. Fox also participates as a gross player in any sequels and spinoffs, sources said.

To a certain extent, it looks as if both studios are going to get something out of this deal. Yet, I’m still saddened by the fact that Fox had no part in the film’s production, but will still receive a percentage of the worldwide gross. Perhaps next time Warner Brothers will read the fine print, and not give someone else the opportunity to capitalize off of their hard work. Live and learn people, you live and you learn.

Do you agree with the settlement between Warner Brothers and Fox? It’s it fair?

Is the End Near for Watchmen Battle?

Krystal Clark — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 18:30:41 +0000

As you already know, 20th Century Fox and Warner Brothers have been duking it out behind closed doors over the distribution rights of the upcoming film, Watchmen. According to THR, Fox and Warner Brothers may be nearing a settlement that would eventually allow Fox to have a stake in the DC comic adaptation. The two sides met this past weekend with U.S. District Court Judge Gary Feess, and insiders say that the power struggle over the Watchmen is “close” to being over.

There have been some positive signs that the legal battle is winding down, including the fact that Warner Brothers hasn’t requested for the January 20 trial date to be moved up. Plus, a scheduled conference was supposed to take place yesterday between both sides, but it was cancelled. This past weekend during the premiere of Fox’s 24, TV spots for the Watchmen began to air on the network. During the commercials they are still advertising the March 6, 2009 release date, which Fox originally wanted to push back until after the trial. So things are looking like they are going in the right direction.

I’m still waiting for an official announcement, but until then I’ll keep you posted.

Watson Reacts to Harry Potter Split

Krystal Clark — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 16:00:27 +0000

Emma Watson, aka Hermione from the Harry Potter films, recently spoke with MTV about the next Harry Potter installment. No, I’m not referring to the Half-Blood Prince, I’m talking about the final piece of this legacy, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Watson gave her reaction to the surprise decision to split Hallows into two separate films! That’s right, their milking this cash cow for as long as they can. Read Watson’s reaction after the jump.

Watson was just as surprised as Potter fans when she heard about the Deathly Hallows split.

“I don’t know,” she replied. “I am as intrigued as you are. I am waiting at the moment to receive the script. It’s a tough call. I’m sure it will be some cruel cliffhanger.”

As for how she feels about her final adieu to the character she grew up playing….

“It’s really mixed feelings,” Watson gushed. “It will be bittersweet. It will be very scary because it’s been such a massive part of my life. It will have been nearly over a decade that I’d been playing Hermione. It’ll be tough but I’ll be ready to go I think. I’ll be ready to take on other projects. It will be exciting.”

Awww, that’s so sweet. The children have really grown up.

News: Fox Could Delay Watchmen Release

Krystal Clark — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 01:30:23 +0000

It looks like it’s going to be one hell of a dog fight between 20th Century Fox and Warner Brothers, regarding the DC comic adaptation Watchmen. As we reported last week, Fox was granted interest in the Watchmen film by a U.S. District Court judge. The studio originally owned the film rights to the graphic novel, but when they sidelined the project its producer decided to shop it around….enter Warner Brothers.

According to LatinoReview, Fox is already starting to flex their copyright muscle.

An attorney for 20th Century Fox says the studio will press its case to delay the release of “Watchmen,” but a rival studio says it plans to release the film as scheduled.

This is getting messier, and messier by the minute. I hope the power struggle for for this film doesn’t ruin it for the fans. People have been waiting a long time for a Watchmen movie, do you think Fox should make us wait even longer? I get that they want their money, but come on.

News: Fox Gains Interest in Watchmen

Krystal Clark — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 00:25:29 +0000

It’s official! On Wednesday Warner Brothers studio got an un-welcomed Christmas gift. It came in the form of a judges ruling, regarding their highly anticipated Watchmen adaptation. For the past year, Warner Brothers and 20 Century Fox have been duking it out over the theatrical rights of the DC graphic novel. According to MTV, Judge Gary Alan Feess ruled in favor of Fox stating that the studio does have a valid interest in the Watchmen film.

NEWS: ‘Brothers Bloom’ Delayed

Krystal Clark — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 18:15:06 +0000

It looks as if we”ll have to wait a little while longer to see Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo don their bowler hats in the dramatic comedy, The Brothers Bloom . According to FirstShowing, the film about two con artists and their last big job, is getting the shuffle treatment. The release date of the film has been pushed back from its original spot of January 16, to May 15, 2009.

Summit pushed the release from January due to an apparent “glut of similar upscale features in the January marketplace” and the immense positive buzz that the film has been gaining. “We knew from our early tests and from enthusiastic festival reception that this film needed a home when audiences could discover it,” said Summit’s President of Domestic Distribution Richie Fay.

I’ve been getting such a headache from all the shifts and changes for the 2009, and 2010 film slate. I seriously can’t keep up.

NEWS: I Am Legend Sequel?

Krystal Clark — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 16:43:49 +0000

Sometimes studios can really take logic out of movie making for the sake of making a buck. We heard rumors earlier this year of a prequel being made to the Will Smith blockbuster I Am Legend. It sounded pretty decent, and according to Cinematical, Smith himself had come up with a plausible story for the film.

“Smith is actually the one who developed the initial story. It took place several years before the original film and there were still pockets of survivors and the story centered around Smith interacting, bonding, and ultimately failing to save them.”

NEWS: Get Smart Director Does Captain Marvel

Krystal Clark — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 16:29:55 +0000

With all the talk about the developments for the Captain America movie, we finally have some info regarding the DC Comics property, Captain Marvel. I know it sounds confusing with Marvel comics, not being the creators of Captain Marvel, but its true, he’s 100% DC. Several attempts have been made to produce a film about this character, but plans always seemed to fall through, until now. According to Variety, Warner Brothers has a script, and has found someone to direct it, Peter Segal.

NEWS: Washington Searches for The Book of Eli

Krystal Clark — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 15:20:38 +0000

Denzel Washington’s back, and he’s bringing a ’70′s star with him. Washington has signed on to play the lead in the Book of Eli. The film is about a man named Eli (Washington), and his journey as he travels across the country in the futuristic, post-apocalyptic West. His character is in search of a sacred book, that may have the answers to saving the world from its morbid state. According to THR, former That 70′s Show star, Mila Kunis who was last seen in Max Payne has landed a role in the film as well.

More on her character after the jump….

Kunis plays a woman named Solara, at first enlisted to betray Eli, she ultimately joins him in his quest.

Also co-starring in Eli is Gary Oldman, who will play a character named Carnegie. The film is directed by the Hughes brothers, Allen and Albert. The last feature they directed was the 2001 Johnny Depp vehicle, From Hell. Eli is currently in pre-production, and is set for a 2010 release.

ScreenCrave.com » brothers

Brothers: Movie Review

The Players:

The Plot:

The Good:

The Bad:

Overall:

Rating: 7/10

Trailer:

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