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IMDbPro

Brothers

  • 20092009
  • RR
  • 1h 45m
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
126K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
1,131
293
Natalie Portman, Tobey Maguire, and Jake Gyllenhaal in Brothers (2009)
Sam Cahill (Maguire) returns from being held as a prisoner-of-war in Afghanistan to find that his ex-con brother (Gyllenhaal) has become the man, of sorts, of the household where Sam's wife, Grace (Portman) had been living under the assumption that she was a widow.
Play trailer2:02
10 Videos
51 Photos
DramaThrillerWar
While on tour in Afghanistan, Sam's copter is shot down and he is presumed dead. Back home, it is his screw-up brother who looks after the family. Sam does return, but with a lot of excess b... Read allWhile on tour in Afghanistan, Sam's copter is shot down and he is presumed dead. Back home, it is his screw-up brother who looks after the family. Sam does return, but with a lot of excess baggage.While on tour in Afghanistan, Sam's copter is shot down and he is presumed dead. Back home, it is his screw-up brother who looks after the family. Sam does return, but with a lot of excess baggage.
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
126K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
1,131
293
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Director
      • Jim Sheridan
    • Writers
      • David Benioff(screenplay)
      • Susanne Bier(motion picture "Brødre")
      • Anders Thomas Jensen(motion picture "Brødre")
    • Stars
      • Jake Gyllenhaal
      • Natalie Portman
      • Tobey Maguire
    Top credits
    • Director
      • Jim Sheridan
    • Writers
      • David Benioff(screenplay)
      • Susanne Bier(motion picture "Brødre")
      • Anders Thomas Jensen(motion picture "Brødre")
    • Stars
      • Jake Gyllenhaal
      • Natalie Portman
      • Tobey Maguire
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 266User reviews
    • 208Critic reviews
    • 58Metascore
    • Awards
      • 4 wins & 16 nominations

    Videos10

    Brothers: UK Trailer
    Trailer 2:02
    Brothers: UK Trailer
    Brothers: "Forbidden" TV Spot
    Trailer 0:32
    Brothers: "Forbidden" TV Spot
    Brothers: Trailer #2
    Trailer 1:02
    Brothers: Trailer #2
    Brothers -- Trailer #1
    Trailer 2:28
    Brothers -- Trailer #1
    "Kiss" from Brothers
    Clip 1:00
    "Kiss" from Brothers
    "I'm No Hero" from Brothers
    Clip 0:35
    "I'm No Hero" from Brothers
    Brothers (2009)
    Interview 1:04
    Brothers (2009)
    Brothers (2009)
    Interview 0:46
    Brothers (2009)
    Brothers (2009)
    Interview 2:04
    Brothers (2009)
    Brothers (2009)
    Interview 1:04
    Brothers (2009)

    Photos51

    Natalie Portman and Tobey Maguire in Brothers (2009)
    Natalie Portman, Bailee Madison, and Taylor Geare in Brothers (2009)
    Natalie Portman, Tobey Maguire, Bailee Madison, and Taylor Geare in Brothers (2009)
    Mare Winningham and Jake Gyllenhaal in Brothers (2009)
    Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal in Brothers (2009)
    Sam Shepard, Mare Winningham, and Jake Gyllenhaal in Brothers (2009)
    Tobey Maguire, Jim Sheridan, and Jake Gyllenhaal in Brothers (2009)
    Natalie Portman and Jake Gyllenhaal in Brothers (2009)
    Natalie Portman and Bailee Madison in Brothers (2009)
    Tobey Maguire in Brothers (2009)
    Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal in Brothers (2009)
    Natalie Portman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Bailee Madison, and Taylor Geare in Brothers (2009)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Jake Gyllenhaal
    Jake Gyllenhaal
    • Tommy Cahill
    Natalie Portman
    Natalie Portman
    • Grace Cahill
    Tobey Maguire
    Tobey Maguire
    • Capt. Sam Cahill
    Sam Shepard
    Sam Shepard
    • Hank Cahill
    Mare Winningham
    Mare Winningham
    • Elsie Cahill
    Bailee Madison
    Bailee Madison
    • Isabelle Cahill
    Taylor Geare
    Taylor Geare
    • Maggie Cahill
    Patrick John Flueger
    Patrick John Flueger
    • Private Joe Willis
    • (as Patrick Flueger)
    Clifton Collins Jr.
    Clifton Collins Jr.
    • Major Cavazos
    Carey Mulligan
    Carey Mulligan
    • Cassie Willis
    Omid Abtahi
    Omid Abtahi
    • Yusuf
    Navid Negahban
    Navid Negahban
    • Murad
    Ethan Suplee
    Ethan Suplee
    • Sweeney
    Arron Shiver
    Arron Shiver
    • A.J.
    Ray Prewitt
    • Owen
    Rebekah Wiggins
    Rebekah Wiggins
    • Marine Wife #1
    Carrie Fleming
    • Marine Wife #2
    Jenny Wade
    Jenny Wade
    • Tina
    • Director
      • Jim Sheridan
    • Writers
      • David Benioff(screenplay)
      • Susanne Bier(motion picture "Brødre")
      • Anders Thomas Jensen(motion picture "Brødre")
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • 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.
    • Goofs
      The movie gives the location of the Marine Base as "Fort Mahlus". Only the US Army begins their bases with "Fort" (i.e. Fort Benning, Fort Bragg, etc). The US Marines begin their bases with "Camp" (i.e. Camp Pendleton, Camp Lejeune, etc).
    • Quotes

      Sam Cahill: You know what I did to fucking get back to you?

      Grace Cahill: No.

      Sam Cahill: YOU FUCKING BITCH! YOU KNOW HOW HE FUCKING SUFFERED? HE FUCKING SUFFERED BECAUSE OF YOU! AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY FUCKING HOUSE AND MY FUCKING KIDS, GRACE? YOU ARE FUCKING MY BROTHER!

      Grace Cahill: Sam, you know I didn't.

      Sam Cahill: YOU ARE FUCKING MY BROTHER IN MY FUCKING HOUSE!

    • Connections
      Featured in Late Show with David Letterman: Episode #17.52 (2009)
    • Soundtracks
      Rocky Mountain Man
      Written by David Manzanares

      Performed by David James

      Published and Recorded by David Manzanares (BMI)

    User reviews266

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    'Brothers' showcases strong, solid performances
    Based on the Danish film, Brødre, Tobey Maguire plays Sam Cahill, a marine who goes off to Afghanistan and allegedly is killed in action. His brother Tommy, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, an ex-con, winds up looking after Sam's wife, Grace (Natalie Portman) and her daughters. As the story moves on, Tommy's negative attitude toward her and his outlook changes and their relationship develops. When Sam, who is found to be alive, returns home, there's a mixture of both joy and resentment among the characters, but to add, Sam has returned a changed and psychologically-damaged man.

    The film mainly focuses on the family drama and relationships of the characters, inter-cut with scenes of Sam in action and imprisoned/tortured in Afghanistan. The progression of the plot takes its time to develop, but it feels organic. The characters feel real. While one could see the film as a criticism of war and the negative effects that war has on the family of veterans, the film is more a character-driven drama, and doesn't touch much into politics.

    Admittedly, the plot itself isn't anything drastically new and one may imagine a plot like this in a made-for-TV drama if not for the emotional depth, intensity, and solid performances from Tobey Maguire, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Natalie Portman. One of the interesting plot points involve the brothers' father's (in a fine performance from Sam Shepard) favoritism for Sam, while looking down on Tommy as the "failure." The love/hate dynamics between the three are interesting and believable even as the two brothers go through drastic character changes.

    Tobey Maguire's performance is particularly noteworthy as Sam, a marine and a loving husband who comes back transformed into a physically emaciated, psychologically-scarred, ticking time bomb. My image of Tobey as Spider-Man now feels like a distant memory especially in comparison to what he portrays here. The two children who play the two daughters of Sam in this film give very natural performances in their varied reactions to difficult situations around them. Jake Gyllenhaal does strong work as Tommy, whose character transformation makes us want to root for him, despite his shady beginnings and flaws. To top off, Natalie Portman is radiant here, turning in a poignant, complex performance as a mother of two, who must deal with the initial mourning of her husband, the joy of his return, and the messy aftermath. Ultimately, her nuanced performance is the glue that holds the film together and make the other characters matter, and one can't help but marvel at the maturity of her performance.

    Directed by Jim Sheridan (The Boxer), this film is a great showcase for all performances involved, while portraying an engaging, intense story about familial loyalty, redemption, and difficult relationships. In the wrong hands, this film could've gone the route of the by-the-numbers Hollywood cliché, but as it is, it remains a solid drama. I give Brothers *** out of **** stars.

    More of my reviews are update on http://twitter.com/d_art
    helpful•57
    10
    • d_art
    • Feb 23, 2010

    FAQ1

    • Is 'Brothers' based on a book?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 4, 2009 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Official site
      • Vidio (Indonesia)
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Tình Anh Em
    • Filming locations
      • Glorieta, New Mexico, USA
    • Production companies
      • Lionsgate
      • Relativity Media
      • Sighvatsson Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $26,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $28,544,157
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $9,527,848
      • Dec 6, 2009
    • Gross worldwide
      • $43,474,578
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 45 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
      • DTS
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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