Brothers

Not ever having seen the Original Susanne Bier film, I knew NOT what to expect from this film, Brothers (released in 2009 in the US, and just recently in Asia).... we (David, Liya & I) were all second guessing what's to come... and what we all thought as predictable turned out to have been unpredictable all in all...

The movie with it's subtleness could very well have been a TV MOVIE, in my opinion, but the outstanding performances of the three leads, Tobey McGuire (creepily lanky and so intense); Natalie Portman (luminous and as always, emotionally beautiful to watch); and Jake Gyllenhaal (he just keeps getting better and better with each movie)... as well as the supporting cast...

At the beginning of the film, one is lead to believe that this simple, normal, loving family's life (Young Couple Tobey & Natalie with their two kids) would be upsetted by the arrival of Tobey's bad boy brother, Jake - newly released from prison... but it was to be sooo much more once Tobey's character goes to Afghanistan as a young captain in the US Marines, where he was captured by the enemies and was presumed dead by the Marines and the family...

Harrowing sequences of Tobey & friend's capture... and tortures.... not for the soft hearted (Liya actually had to scream and walk away a couple of times!) ...and what was to happen in captivity, set off all the drama of the movie....

When I first saw the poster for this film, and see the three leads, I knew I wanted to see it... and now am very glad I did.... again, the director Jim Sheridan did not go for the full blown drama... nor did the actors do over the top performances... but it was all the subtleties of the film and the actors that made the movie even more worth seeing for me... All three actors, I PREDICT, will sooner or later, walk away with their own OSCARS - if Hollywood would just really take notice....