'

Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and The Band

Play trailer

2:19

Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and The Band

R

Released Feb 21, 2020

1h 40m

Music

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

84%

Tomatometer

62 Reviews

87%

Popcornmeter

100+ Ratings

The story of a band that went from backing up Bob Dylan to becoming one of the most influential groups of its era.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Buy Now

Critics Consensus

Once Were Brothers my frustrate Band fans looking for a less narrowly focused overview, but the group's music and history remain as engrossing as ever.

Read Critics Reviews

Leslie Felperin

Guardian

The terrifyingly industrious Robertson effectively narrates the story and takes centre stage, which is probably right considering how central he was to the outfit.

Rated: 3/5

Sep 4, 2020

Full Review

John Doyle

Globe and Mail

It's a bracing journey filled with wonderful anecdotes and splendid footage, and it is, emphatically, Robbie Robertson telling the story of The Band, from his perspective.

May 22, 2020

Full Review

Robert Levin

Newsday

The better way to come close to an understanding of who The Band was is to re-watch The Last Waltz instead.

Rated: 2.5/4

Mar 9, 2020

Full Review

Bill Brioux

Brioux.tv

[A] powerful rock 'n' roll documentary...

Oct 11, 2022

Full Review

Alex Behan

The Post NZ

If Get Back has you pining for more music documentaries about influential bands of the '60s, this offers a more traditional band biography, with a more traditional running-time.

Dec 10, 2021

Full Review

Mark Beaumont

NME (New Musical Express)

Featuring new interviews with Clapton, Springsteen and Martin Scorsese, this gripping documentary charts the rise and fall of music's most anonymous trailblazers.

Rated: 4/5

Jun 17, 2021

Full Review

Read all reviews

Sergio A

Bio sobre The Band, que no los conocía. Ta bueno, pero capaz me hubiese gustado menos arte y más chisme Behing The Music

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

07/13/23

Full Review

Bobby C

Fascinating story. You don't have to be a fan of The Band or Robbie Robertson.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

04/17/22

Full Review

Audience Member

I really enjoyed it .

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/01/22

Full Review

dave s

Haters are gonna hate, but regardless of your feelings about Robbie Robertson, Once Were Brothers is a remarkably insightful documentary about the iconic band The Band. Covering the early years as The Hawks, backing up ‘Rompin' Ronnie Hawkins, to touring with Dylan after he went electric to their years working out of Woodstock to their final show as documented in The Last Waltz, it is informative and joyous and tragic and, most importantly, wildly entertaining. Fans of The Band will enjoy the behind-the-scenes footage and stills. The uninitiated will find it a primer for understanding the early years of rock and roll.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Good documentary, but this is Robbie Roberson's one-sided version of what happened. Levon and others disagree.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/15/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Every time I watch or read something about musicians I end up disappointed, except for the Beatles & David Bowie. I liked a few of The Band's hits. I find it very sad that Robertson couldn't share his fortune from royalties. Levon Helm was right in being upset because without him the songs were only words on paper. Greed is a terrible thing.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/05/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Daniel Roher

Director

Martin Scorsese

Self

Bruce Springsteen

Self

Bob Dylan

Self

Eric Clapton

Self

Robbie Robertson

Self

Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues

98%

81%

Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues

Watchlist

Carlos

100%

94%

Carlos

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Carlos

The Sparks Brothers

95%

98%

The Sparks Brothers

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Sparks Brothers

Gimme Danger

95%

71%

Gimme Danger

Watchlist

The Velvet Underground

98%

80%

The Velvet Underground

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Velvet Underground

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and The Band: Trailer 1

2:19

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

The story of a band that went from backing up Bob Dylan to becoming one of the most influential groups of its era.

Director: Daniel Roher
Producer: Lana Belle Mauro, Andrew Munger, Stephen Paniccia, Sam Sutherland
Screenwriter: Daniel Roher
Distributor: Magnolia Pictures
Production Co: Bell Media Studios, White Pine Pictures, Shed, Polygram Entertainment, Imagine Documentaries
Rating: R (Drug References|Some Language)
Genre: Music
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 21, 2020, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 1, 2020
Box Office (Gross USA): $448.6K
Runtime: 1h 40m

Most Popular at Home Now