Brothers

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Brothers

R

2009

1h 44m

Drama

War

Mystery & Thriller

Romance

Action

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

63%

Tomatometer

156 Reviews

62%

Popcornmeter

100,000+ Ratings

Siblings Sam (Tobey Maguire) and Tommy Cahill (Jake Gyllenhaal) are as far apart as brothers can be; while Sam serves his country as a Marine, Tommy is a drifter who just got out of prison. When Sam is shot down and presumed dead in Afghanistan, Tommy vows to take care of Sam's wife, Grace (Natalie Portman), and his children. Tommy and Grace become close, and when Sam unexpectedly returns home, the consequences of their actions threaten the foundation of the entire family.

Critics Consensus

It plays more like a traditional melodrama than the Susanne Bier film that inspired it, but Jim Sheridan's Brothers benefits from rock-solid performances by its three leads.

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Ed Koch

The Atlantic

01/16/2018

Although Brothers is not a first-rate film, it informs us about the after-effects of war and is worth seeing while we wait for better ones to come along.

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Candice Frederick

Reel Talk Online

09/12/2017

A

... subtly yet brilliantly captures one soldier's fight to end the war in his mind months after leaving the battlefield.

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Laura Kern

Film Comment Magazine

09/24/2014

Anyone fond of Danish director Susanne Bier's 2004 original should steer clear of this ill-advised though faithful remake by Jim Sheridan.

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Richard Crouse

Richard Crouse

01/31/2021

4/5

Isn't a war movie. It's a movie about what happens after war, and in its own quiet way shows the toll war takes on not only the people overseas but those who stay home as well.

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Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

09/04/2020

3.0/4.0

Bier's original film, which was a ballsier, more political and far grittier take on this story, carried with it a heavier, more universal tone.

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Micheal Compton

Bowling Green Daily News

05/11/2019

B

The entire cast is first-rate, especially Maguire, who shows a lot of range in a really difficult role.

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Cork B

@RT87142816 May 4

Solid with a great cast and decent acting. A lot of the emotional high points feel like set ups, and I think implying and not showing the war would have been better, but still solid all around.

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Danielle G

@RT59202558 May 1

Might be the worst movie I’ve ever seen. I don’t know how they convinced this cast to do this movie with this script. Felt like they filmed and entire movie cut it in half and only released 1 of the halves. More storyline and character development could’ve created a much better movie.

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Zach W.

@alanwakeup25 Apr 4

SPOILER ⚠️⚠️⚠️ Liked the movie besides everyone around Sam made it seem like Grace and Tommy were actually doing the deed when in fact they weren’t. Hate movies where people could be saying more but they aren’t. Cheap way to move the story ahead.

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Sakke K

@Retrodouche Apr 1

The trailer totally spoiled the whole movie :D I was expecting more deeper dive into the struggle of a soldier suffering from pstd but they spend 1 hour to the build up and 40 minutes to the aftermath. Should‘ve been the other way around. I also don’t buy Maguire as a soldier and even less as a captain. Even though the acting was good no nine year old kid says stuff like that :D The acting was solid all around.

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Donovan H.

@donnie1 Mar 9

Solid acting based on a true story about the effects of PTSD on a war hero and his family.

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Gregory M

@Gregory780 Mar 6

Well acted drama showing the effects of war on a person. This is a heartbreaking movie and some people may find this difficult to watch. Toby Maguire’s portrayal of a veteran suffering from PTSD is very realistic and disturbing. But it’s not just Toby, the entire cast (even the child actors) do a great job, there isn’t one lacking performance and the acting really elevates the movie. Overall if you can stomach the emotional scenes it’s definitely worth a watch.

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Jim Sheridan

Director

Tobey Maguire

Sam Cahill

Jake Gyllenhaal

Tommy Cahill

Natalie Portman

Grace Cahill

Sam Shepard

Hank Cahill

Bailee Madison

Isabelle Cahill

Brothers: Official Clip - Kill or Be Killed

2:12

Brothers: Official Clip - Sam Loses It

1:37

Brothers: Official Clip - I Wish You Stayed Dead!

2:16

Brothers: Official Clip - Give Me the Keys

1:55

Brothers: Official Clip - He's Dead, Tommy

1:33

Brothers: Official Clip - The Truth Comes Out

1:48

Brothers: Official Clip - A Family Matter

2:18

Brothers: Official Clip - Making the First Move

2:19

Brothers: Official Clip - Family Dinner

1:55

Brothers: Official Clip - Did You Sleep With My Wife?

2:12

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Synopsis

Siblings Sam (Tobey Maguire) and Tommy Cahill (Jake Gyllenhaal) are as far apart as brothers can be; while Sam serves his country as a Marine, Tommy is a drifter who just got out of prison. When Sam is shot down and presumed dead in Afghanistan, Tommy vows to take care of Sam's wife, Grace (Natalie Portman), and his children. Tommy and Grace become close, and when Sam unexpectedly returns home, the consequences of their actions threaten the foundation of the entire family.

Director: Jim Sheridan
Producer: Michael De Luca, Ryan Kavanaugh, Sigurjon Sighvatsson
Screenwriter: David Benioff
Distributor: Lionsgate Films
Production Co: Relativity, Sighvatsson Films, Michael De Luca
Rating: R (Some Disturbing Violent Conten|Language)
Genre: Drama, War, Mystery & Thriller, Romance, Action
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 4, 2009, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 23, 2011
Box Office (Gross USA): $28.5M
Runtime: 1h 44m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital, DTS