It's a solid chapter in the history of American popular song, an examination of Walt Disney's final career triumphs, a glimpse at both the daily grind and the eureka moments of songwriting, and a story of family dynamics all rolled into one.
The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story (2009)
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work ![]()
Reviews Counted:16
Fresh:14
Rotten:2
Average Rating:7.5/10
Genre: Education/General Interest
Synopsis:
If you grew up in the 20th Century, odds are you’ve been singing along to the Sherman Brothers’ songs -- maybe without even knowing it. The Academy Award®-winning brothers, Richard and Robert...
If you grew up in the 20th Century, odds are you’ve been singing along to the Sherman Brothers’ songs -- maybe without even knowing it. The Academy Award®-winning brothers, Richard and Robert Sherman, arguably defined family musical entertainment with unforgettable songs like “Chim Chim Cher-ee” and “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” from Mary Poppins; “I Wanna Be Like You” from The Jungle Book; the score to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and the most translated song ever written, “It’s a Small World (After All)” from the popular Disneyland attraction.
While their songs were cherished by both audiences and Walt Disney himself, outside the public eye, the boys’ personal relationship with each other was far less harmonious. In the feature length documentary The boys: The Sherman Brothers’ Story, a wide array of notable celebrities, professional peers, close friends, family members and the brothers themselves describe the Shermans’ eight-decade journey through love and partnership, loyalty and estrangement. "The Boys: The Sherman Brothers’ Story is a unique, yet universal story of two brothers pursuing true passion, battling personal differences and working as a team to, ultimately, walk with giants.
--© Walt Disney Pictures
Starring: Julie Andrews, Roy E. Disney, Samuel Goldwyn, John Landis
Starring: Julie Andrews, Roy E. Disney, Samuel Goldwyn, John Landis, Angela Lansbury, John Lasseter, Kenny Loggins, Alan Menken, Hayley Mills, Randy Newman, Robert Osborne, Debbie Reynolds, Stephen Schwartz, Ben Stiller, Dick Van Dyke, John Williams, Annette Funicello
Director: Gregory V. Sherman, Jeffrey C. Sherman
Director: Gregory V. Sherman, Jeffrey C. Sherman
Producer: Gregory V. Sherman, Jeffrey C. Sherman
Studio: Walt Disney Pictures
Reviews for The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story
The film holds their Disney songs in such high esteem, and discusses them with such little context, that The Boys sometimes feels as though it is set in Disneyland, not the real world.
Directors Gregory and Jeffrey Sherman, sons of the composers, have set themselves such a furious pace in parsing the full chronology that we only skim the surface of the Poppins near-disaster.
A lively, engrossing, fascinating and well-edited documentary. It finds just the right balance between entertaining the audience and provoking them intellectually as well as emotionally.
Engaging docu draws on plentiful archival footage and A-list interviewees, and should lure dedicated nostalgists.
Be warned: you will leave this wonderful biography tortured by the classic songs threaded throughout.
Anyone expecting a saccharine-mapped trip down memory lane from this engrossing documentary, directed by cousins Gregory and Jeff Sherman, sons of Robert and Richard, is in for a bittersweet, heartbreaking surprise.
The story of the men who wrote them in the golden age of Walt Disney Studios' movie musicals, brothers Robert and Richard Sherman, is one of the most fascinating chronicles of creative partnership never told.
The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story is, above all, a loving salute from sons to their accomplished fathers.
An irresistible documentary about the inexhaustible sibling songwriting duo Richard and Robert Sherman.
The documentary covers 80 years of their lives, from a happy childhood right through to the present day, covering their personal and professional lives and offering a glimpse of their particular creative process.
An excellent film -- entertaining and informative and sometimes stunning in its display of the personal demons shared by these two geniuses.
Film buffs and cineastes will find the doc's inside-show biz stories a real treat.
It might not break new ground, but this entertaining, inside-show-business documentary is greatly enhanced by the presence of the two engaging 'boys' of the title.
Evocative and intriguing, spiced by lush, radiant movie clips illustrating the Sherman brothers' glorious legacy of music.
Latest News for The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story
May 25, 2009:
Trailer & Poster review ![]()
More...
May 21, 2009:
Critics Consensus: Terminator, Night Are So-So Sequels
This week at the movies, we've got deadly machines (Terminator Salvation, starring Christian Bale and Sam Worthington); historical hysterics (Night at the Museum: Battle of the... More...
More Movies
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie | Date |
|---|---|---|
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
Sponsored Links
Around The Network
- The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story at Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh Links
Featured

Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.

Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.



Top Critic

