The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story (2009)

A documentary about Robert B. Sherman & Richard M. Sherman -- aka The Sherman Brothers -- the Academy Award and Grammy-winning songwriters.

Directors:

Gregory V. Sherman, Jeff Sherman

Stars:

Julie Andrews, Roy Edward Disney, Richard M. Sherman

Cast

Credited cast:
Julie Andrews	...	Herself
Jim Dale	...	Himself
Roy Edward Disney	...	Himself (as Roy E. Disney)
Micky Dolenz	...	Himself
Karen Dotrice	...	Herself
Samuel Goldwyn Jr.	...	Himself
Bruce Gordon	...	Himself
Sheldon Harnick	...	Himself
James Jensen	...	Himself
Jeff Kurtti	...	Himself
John Landis	...	Himself
Angela Lansbury	...	Herself
John Lasseter	...	Himself
Gavin Lee	...	Himself
Wendy Liebman	...	Herself

Storyline

A documentary about Robert B. Sherman & Richard M. Sherman -- aka The Sherman Brothers -- the Academy Award and Grammy-winning songwriters.

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Plot Keywords:

songwriter | songwriting team | apostrophe in title | colon in title | six word title

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Taglines:

Brothers, Partners, Strangers

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Genres:

Documentary

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for mild thematic elements, smoking images and brief language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 April 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Boys: L'histoire des frères Sherman

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$19,875 (USA) (22 May 2009)

Gross:

$54,852 (USA) (4 September 2009)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Pictures, Crescendo Productions, Traveling Light Partners

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Quotes

Robert B. Sherman: [talking about Mary Poppins author P.L. Travers] She was such a witch.

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Crazy Credits

A picture of Robert B. Sherman and Richard M. Sherman receiving the National Medal of Arts at the White House on November 2008 is shown.

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Connections

References The Little Mermaid (1989)

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Soundtracks

"Rain Street"
Written and Performed by Richard M. Sherman

User Reviews

For artistically (and nostalgically) inclined viewers, a treasure trove of song and emotions...

Starting in 1961 with an inauspicious tune called "Strummin' Song" (from "The Horsemasters"), brothers Robert and Richard Sherman, sons of Russian-Jewish immigrants, became the in-house, go-to songwriters for the Walt Disney Company. They churned out one melodious, deceptively simple ditty after another, until they eventually hit upon Oscar gold with their score from "Mary Poppins". As it turns out, the fabulously talented Shermans are not unlike most siblings: there are rivalries between the two, personality differences which cause them to clash, and they're not really the best of friends. This incredibly moving documentary, directed by the duo's sons, Gregory and Jeff Sherman, was a valiant attempt to get Robert and Richard to reconcile their feelings for one another--and to acknowledge their extensive body of work, which is often unfairly criticized as being sappy or sugary. It may indeed seem a bit of a stretch to compare the Shermans to John Lennon and Paul McCartney...but after hearing such wonderful songs as "Feed the Birds" (Walt's personal favorite), "On the Front Porch" (Robert's favorite), "A Spoonful of Sugar", "Winnie the Pooh", and "It's a Small World", among others, their resume becomes a virtual collection of childhood memories. The Shermans deserved this valentine to their talents as sentimental and romantic songwriters par excellence, and the family story which slowly plays out behind-the-scenes underscores their sunshiny output with realistic melancholy. It is quite an achievement. ***1/2 from ****