Brothers (2009)

About

Before leaving on his second tour in Afghanistan, Marine Captain Sam Cahill, a leader, an athlete, a good husband and father, welcomes his screw-up brother Tommy home from prison. He'd robbed a bank. In country, Sam's helicopter is shot down and all are presumed dead. Back home, while Sam wastes away as a prisoner in a remote encampment, Tommy tries to take care of the widow and her two children. While imprisoned, Sam experiences horrors unbearable, so when he's rescued and returns home, he's silent, detached, without affect, and he's convinced his wife and brother have slept together. Demons of war possess him; what will silence them?

Details

Director: Jim Sheridan

Writer/Screenplay: David Benioff (screenplay), Susanne Bier (motion picture "Brødre") and Anders Thomas Jensen (motion picture "Brødre")

Producer: Ryan Kavanaugh, Michael De Luca, Sigurjon Sighvatsson

Tagline: There are two sides to every family.

Running time: 1h 45min

Certificate: R

Budget: $26,000,000 (estimated)

Box office: $43,600,000 (worldwide)

Genre: * Drama

Released: 4 December 2009 (USA)

Music Composer: Thomas Newman

Cast

Soundtrack

Franchise

Related

Trivia

  • Jake Gyllenhaal learned of the death of his close friend Heath Ledger while he was in the middle of shooting a scene for this film. Gyllenhaal immediately walked off set, and returned to finish the scene two days later. He then took a longer bereavement leave before he was ready to continue with the rest of his scenes.
  • Originally, Jake Gyllenhaal wanted to play Sam and Tobey Maguire wanted to play Tommy. Jim Sheridan did not feel Maguire was convincing enough to play the "bad" brother, so they switched roles.
  • During one intense early prison scene, Gyllenhaal jokingly reached into his pocket and took out a picture of Ledger to stick on the prison wall. "Like those prisoners put [loved ones] on the wall, but Jake's was Heath Ledger," one set source recalls. "That was hilarious. It was a nice moment." (This was before Ledger's death).
  • Tobey Maguire underwent an extreme physical transformation for the role, losing around 15 pounds to portray a gaunt prisoner of war. He also reportedly isolated himself from cast members off set to stay in character.
  • The film is a remake of the acclaimed 2004 Danish film Brødre, directed by Susanne Bier, who also co-wrote the screenplay for that original version.
  • Jim Sheridan described the film as being about "the wages of war" — not the battlefield itself but what soldiers bring home with them. He drew on research into PTSD among veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Critical Reception

Brothers received mixed to positive reviews from critics. Jake Gyllenhaal and Natalie Portman were widely praised for their nuanced performances, while Tobey Maguire's intense portrayal of a PTSD-afflicted prisoner of war was more divisive — with some critics finding it harrowing and effective, others feeling it tipped into melodrama. Jim Sheridan was credited for the film's restrained direction and its focus on the emotional aftermath of war rather than combat itself. The performances of the two child actresses, Bailee Madison and Taylor Geare, also drew significant praise. The film was noted as a thoughtful and emotionally demanding adaptation of its Danish source material.

Reviews

Links

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