David O'ConnellBrothers
September 28th 2010 04:44
An American remake of Susanne Bier’s superb Danish original, Brothers (2009), in comparison, fails to ignite. This is a going-through-the-motions, drab imitation – almost quite literally in that virtually every scene of Bier’s film is replicated by director Jim Sheridan in what amounts to a pointless exercise. Rather than offer a worthwhile interpretation of the source material, usually reliable screenwriter David Benioff is credited with restating the film's narrative for its producers with a single purpose in mind – so that the English-speaking world need not be troubled by those pesky, annoying subtitles.
The two brothers of this story couldn’t be more different: Sam (Tobey Maguire) is a responsible family man and elite, high-ranking Marine. He’s about to leave his wife Grace (Natalie Portman) and their two young daughters behind as he embarks on a tour of duty in Afghanistan. At the same time, his brother Tommy (Jake Gyllenhaal) is being released from prison after serving a sentance for bank robbery. The boys’ father Hank (Sam Shephard) clearly favours Sam who he regards as a model citizen, whilst Tommy is openly resented, seen as a disgrace, having failed in every way Sam has embraced life and made a success of himself.
When the family is shaken to its core by some traumatic news, their dynamic begins to shift. The characters’ perception of one another, like our own, begins to subtly alter as they struggle to deal with overwhelming emotions. Brothers, with its multiple major twists, is the sort of film that asks to be experienced by an audience without too much prior knowledge.
Tobey Maguire as the distraught, increasingly unhinged serviceman just doesn’t convince. For me, he suffers the same fate Leonardo Di Caprio did for such a long time (and still does in the eyes of many) in that his eternally youthful looks undermine any chance of him being taken seriously in what aspires to be a heavyweight drama. Here he begins to resemble Peter Parker on steroids in the third act, especially in moments of rage that come across as contrived rather than raw and primal. Technically Maguire fulfills the role's demands, immersing himself in the same bleakness that characterised Ulrich Thomsen’s meltdown in the original, but without the hard-edged conviction. Like the film as a whole, his transformation never quite rings true.
The petite Portman is a decent actress in the right role, but again we just don’t feel her grief nor the projection of a complexity of emotional changes in the way the imposing Connie Nielsen was able to. Gyllenhaal is probably the pick of the trio as the rugged, black sheep of the family. But again, he doesn’t possess anything close to the intimidating physical presence of Nikolaj Lie Kaas. These comparisons, I admit, are unfair but just too blatantly obvious to ignore.
It’s hard to distance myself from the original which I found riveting and is still so fresh in my mind. Sheridan’s film feels underwhelming when held up against the mirror of Bier’s work. That’s to be expected of any glossed-over American adaptation, but the lack of engagement is something else; a deficiency of dramatic potency sinks the project ultimately, even though the final few scenes are possibly the strongest in the film as they should be.
This is a watered-down version of Bier’s film; solid enough, certainly, if taken at face value. But what’s most disappointing is its glaring lack of creativity, content to regurgitate Brodre (2004) without adding any interesting layers or dimensions to what originally was a very powerful story of grief, corrosive secrets and - closely linked to both - the terrible burden of moral responsibility.
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Comment by ShaunK
Screen Adventure
I was completely unaware of Bier's other films, all I know of her is that I saw her Dogme film 'Open Hearts' and I really liked it. I'll track down her original of this. Thanks for the enlightenment
Comment by Deni
Abstract Magick
Cinema Herald
Thanks for the heads up, David.
Comment by Matt Shea
Comment by David O'Connell
20/20 Filmsight
Screen Fanatic
I like Gyllenhaal especially Deni and he's the best thing in it without doubt. But yeah, Tobey, I'm not a big wrap for him. I thought he was just awful in The Good German too. You should definitely check out the original, it's a fantastic film and far more powerful.
Cheers Matt, I agree he is miscast. You're right, we won't give them away but I know the moments you mean, they just lack the raw conviction of Bier's film. To be honest I'm sure I would have liked this a lot more if I'd never seen the original but you can't help dialing down its rating when you know how well the story can be pulled off!
Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
I haven't seen the remake but did rank the original so may see it for comparative reasons at some stage.