The performances are impressive, especially Nikolaj Lie Kaas as Jannik and the very sympathetic Nielsen, who relishes the chance to show she's more than just a pretty face.
Brothers (2005)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:70
Fresh:62
Rotten:8
Average Rating:7.5/10
Consensus: This tense, understated drama explores the complications of individual and social ethics stemming from the repercussions of war on one man and his family.
Runtime: 1 hr 57 mins
Genre: Foreign Films
Synopsis: Connie Nielsen, who has played pivotal roles in such English-language films as GLADIATOR, THE DEVIL'S ADVOCATE, and RUSHMORE, is the powerful and emotional heart of BROTHERS, a moving Danish film... Connie Nielsen, who has played pivotal roles in such English-language films as GLADIATOR, THE DEVIL'S ADVOCATE, and RUSHMORE, is the powerful and emotional heart of BROTHERS, a moving Danish film set in her home country. Directed by Susanne Bier (who made the Dogme 95 film OPEN HEARTS), BROTHERS tells the story of two very different brothers: Jannik (Nikolaj Lie Kaas) is a drunken loser who has just been released from prison for bank robbery and assault, while Michael (Ulrich Thomsen) is a well-respected army major and family man, with a wife, Sarah (Nielsen), and two kids. But when Michael goes off on a mission to Afghanistan to rescue a captured radar man, his helicopter is shot down and he is assumed to have been killed in action. The news devastates Sarah and her in-laws, while Jannik becomes more reckless before stepping in to help her and the kids build a new life. But as Jannik and Sarah grow close, it is discovered that Michael has survived--and has done something that haunts him and threatens everything and everyone. Bier's film is filled with tender moments as well as bitter, frightening, fast-paced scenes that are hard to forget. Nielsen is a standout as Sarah, who tries to balance love and loss and then love again with a man she's not sure she knows anymore. [More]
Starring: Connie Nielsen, Ulrich Thomsen, Nicolaj Lie Kass, Lene Maria Christensen
Starring: Connie Nielsen, Ulrich Thomsen, Nicolaj Lie Kass, Lene Maria Christensen, Andre Babikian, Laura Bro, Lars Hjortshoj, Niels Olsen, Rebecca Logstrup Saltau, Sarah Juel Werner
Director: Susanne Bier
Director: Susanne Bier
Screenwriter: Anders Thomas Jensen
Story: Susanne Bier, Anders Thomas Jensen
Producer: Sisse Graum Jorgensen
Composer: Johan Soderqvist
Studio: IFC Films
Reviews for Brothers
As for [Connie] Nielsen, she proves that Hollywood has yet to give her a role that's worthy of her talents and gives a strong performance that is effectively the centre of the film.
The characters are recognizably, painfully human -- you know, just like you.
Though Brothers is at times unexpectedly harrowing, it is neither a preachy anti-war diatribe nor a triangulated domestic drama, but it does show how even little wars can disrupt the most harmonious families.
The been-there, seen-that feeling is hard to shake, despite the undeniable skill in the presentation.
This Danish drama of guilt, displacement and brotherly love is all the better for its understatement.
As warm as her approach is to these people..., Bier never descends into cheap sentiment or soap opera simplicities.
This impressively original film plays with cliches, especially ones about how people act, and act out, in crises. Then it explodes those conventions with devastating consequences.
Director Susanne Bier manages to rise above mere melodrama to realistic human emotions. The performances are so powerful you can't ignore the plight of these people.
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