Rating: 6/10

Writer: Susanne Bier and Anders Thomas Jensen (original film), David Benioff (screenplay)
Director: Jim Sheridan
Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Tobey Maguire, Natalie Portman
Studio: Relativity Media

The set-up for BROTHERS is a wrenching one. Tobey Maguire is Sam Cahill, an experienced and respected Marine. His younger brother, Tommy (Jake Gyllenhaal), is a directionless ex-con, fresh out of jail. Sam is a dedicated family man, married to his high school sweetheart Grace (Natalie Portman), with two young daughters at home. Tommy doesn’t even have a place to call home. When Sam is sent back for another tour of duty in Afghanistan and is presumed dead in a helicopter accident, Tommy’s life changes in unexpected ways, as he grows closer to Grace and the girls in the wake of their grief.

But for a film with such generally good acting from our titular brothers, and such an emotionally rich storyline, BROTHERS left me cold. I expected to be moved and touched by the film, but the impact of BROTHERS left me before I could even leave the theater. While the film does not necessarily feel choppy, it seems that a rigorous amount of editing may have removed smaller scenes that would have added to the emotional impact necessary to make the film really soar. There is simply something missing.

The film takes place primarily in two locations – Sam and Grace’s home, and in the deserts of Afghanistan. Because of the limits of such rigid locations, so much of the film has to rely on the performance of its characters. BROTHERS is not a film that turns to cinematography or lighting or effects for impact, it is a film that exists so much in looks and tone. Jake Gyllenhaal turns in the best adult performance in the film. Tommy could easily be a one-dimensional character, by Gyllenhaal infuses him with a vulnerability that makes both his mistakes and his successes feel very real.

Natalie Portman frequently feels too young for her role as Grace. In the original Swedish film that BROTHERS is based on, 2004’s BRODRE, the role that inspired Grace was played by Connie Nielsen, who was almost 40 at the time of filming. This is not to presume that age automatically comes with the gravitas necessary to carry such a role, but Portman constantly feels too adolescent as Grace. As an experienced Marine wife, Portman frequently comes off as miscast, or at the very least much weaker than Grace’s life would have made her. In moments of levity, Portman does come alive, and her scenes with Gyllenhaal are excellent. The two demonstrate real chemistry and the tangled triangle they find themselves in is believable and does not feel forced at all.

Maguire’s role too often veers to the caricature of what we expect him to be. At the very least, his Sam Cahill may have been unmercifully edited down to the point that we get two wildly different takes on the man. A large part of the film is Sam’s transformation due to horrific circumstances beyond his control, and while so much of the second act of the film is dedicated to exploring that, there’s not enough substance to make any of the outcomes feel real or inevitable. BROTHERS shows too much of what happens to Sam while at war, and instead of being exposed to the horrors of war engaging and moving the audience, the converse happens. I felt disconnected from Sam’s journey, and would have rather left much more the imagination. As it stands, so much of Sam’s battle is in his head, and I would have much preferred for the film to play off of that, not the actual events.

The real stand-out of the entire film is the acting work done by Bailee Madison and Taylor Geare as Sam and Grace’s daughters (Isabelle and Maggie, respectively). Whereas certain parts of the film shift into by-the-numbers territory, Madison and Geare both turn in stirring and rich performances. Madison, in particular, dominates a few scenes showing the breakdown of her family. It is actually her, as oldest daughter Isabelle, that speaks out and ultimately kicks off the big turning point of the film.

Carey Mulligan and Clifton Collins Jr. both also make appearances in the film. As two of the year’s biggest breakthrough stars, it is interesting to seem them in smaller roles. However, neither of them gets the screen time they deserve, and Mulligan’s largest (and strongest) scene is cut short before it reaches its full potential. But, sadly, that’s something that could be said for the whole film.