Brother

Based on the novel by David Chariandy: in the 1990s in the Scarborough suburb of Toronto, Ruth (Marsha Stephanie Blake) is a Jamaican immigrant raising her teenage sons Francis (Aaron Pierre) and Michael (Lamar Johnson). Non-linear storytelling is used in three different time periods to show the family's struggles, strengths, and life-changing events.

Many small scenes are used in the storytelling and they work very well. Even though the multiple time lines are challenging at first, this method pays off very well. This is mainly because the later time-frame indicates that a serious change has happened in the middle time period. The viewer is left curious as to what mysterious event will happen in the middle frame as the film is nearing its end. So, while the climax is in the middle time-frame, it ends up being exposed near the film's end rather than in the middle as it would have in a linear time frame.

The film's first half is depressing as it exposes hardships with very few lighter moments to relieve the sadness. While this would be a handicap for other films, "Brother" works well in channeling the mood to melancholy in its last quarter as it pieces all the mysteries together so compassionately. It is also accompanied beautifully by the song "Ne Me Quitte Pas" sung by Nina Simone. In fact, director/writer Clement Virgo uses music beautifully throughout his fine film with an impressive score by Todor Kobakov.

"Brother" uses various themes effectively including police brutality; the poor immigrant experience; exploitive talent contests in the 1990s in Toronto (and the false hope and heartbreak that arise); and the terrible effects from grief. This film is courageous in its detailed focus on grief which is rare and praiseworthy.

The main performances are powerful especially Johnson whose character is the main focus of the film and Blake whose character changes significantly in different time periods. - dbamateurcritic.

Great movie, great casting, beautifully shot scenes and visuals, just great storytelling all around! I really enjoyed the movie. After watching Aaron Pierre in Rebel Ridge, I thought his acting was so great that I had to research what else he had been in and I was led to watch this movie, I'm glad I did because he's definitely a star on the rise, I look forward to seeing what else he can do! Was it just me or nah but I thought Michael's girlfriend in the movie was Alicia Keys at first?! I also loved how the movie captured an accurate portrayal of a grieving Mother, I know that feeling all too well :(

I was really excited about this film as I too am an immigrant that grew up in the Toronto suburbs, on the west side, in Mississauga, but the feel and reality of living in the apartment blocks reminded me of my own experiences in such neighborhoods.

The toil, taking multiple buses each and every day to make it on time to sub par underpaid minimum wage job. Working long hours and overtime to get that 1.5x bump... I could totally understand the predicament this family found themselves in and the sacrifices they made to keep their heads above water.

That said, being polish racial profiling was not an extra burden that we had to carry. Still it was easy to feel out of place around those that had big houses multiple cars and seemingly little hardship in comparison...

Luckily, with two working parents doing overtime to the max, we were able to buy a semi-detached house in the burbs. When I turned 16, I could drive the parents car and the old life felt like a bad nightmare.

I remember for 5 years after moving to our new house, in the burbs these recuring dreams of waking up in the old apartment, carpets in the hallway that needed to be changed last decade, garbage chute smelling foul as you got close to it, the stairways reeking of urine you wake up in a cold sweat being glad it was only a nightmare.

Could it have been different with only 1 parent and police profiling, you bet!

Brothers, a metaphor of love.

At first glance, this is a film about human dignity and family unity. However, it does not stop there. In its multiple layers, it explores other weighty and complex themes. Such as the fear that comes with daring to seek an identity in a society filled with prejudices and inequalities. It is also a movie about the choices we all have to make at some point in our lives, but in the case of these brothers, such decisions are made more difficult by the weight of the traumas and stigmas imposed by their environment. Which, through tragedy, pushes them towards anger, resentment, and violence.

To avoid drowning in this predetermined fate, they have only one lifeline; love, which also seems to be able to flourish in the driest deserts. Can they resist and save themselves, even if it's just one of them? This is the question posed at the beginning of the film, and which is revealed to us in a moving and sincere ending.

As for the technical aspects, the film is characterized by good photography, excellent handling of the shots, and a fragmented narrative with flash forwards and flashbacks, which although may seem confusing at times, at the end of each sequence, we realize that it is not, demonstrating how the apparent chaos prevails a sublime order.

If you are looking for a Hollywood-style movie simply to entertain yourself, this film is a 6 at best, possibly a 7. But if you are a sensitive and curious spirit who wonders what it's like to walk in the shoes of the less fortunate, then this film is for you.

It follows a Canadian-Jamaican family in Scarborough, Ontario, over 20 years from 1981 to 2001.

Ruth (Marsha Stephanie Blake) is a Jamaican immigrant to Toronto, Canada. She has two sons--Francis (Jacob Williams/Aaron Pierre) and Michael (David Odion/Sabastian Nigel Singh/Lamar Johnson). Francis is older than Michael by a couple of years and is protective of his family in the father's absence. By his late teens, Francis is a large, physically intimidating man who acts with confidence but has some questionable friends. Michael is smaller, darker, less self-confident, and more studious in school. In high school, Michael is attracted to Aisha (Delia Lisette Chambers/Kiana Madeira), a Canadian-Jamaican neighbor whose father came from the same area of Jamaica as Ruth.

The story jumps back and forth between 1981, 1991, when a tragic event occurs, and 2001 when Michael is trying to hold things together. We see the bleakness of many Caribbean immigrant lives, the aura of violence that is never far away, and the problematic relationship with a lily-white 1991 Scarborough police force.

"Brother" is the story of family love persisting through trauma, shattered dreams of a hopeful Jamaican musician, and territorial conflicts between gangs of similar backgrounds, with a final glimmer of resolution at the end. "Brother" was a hard movie to watch because of its ring of truth and many dark scenes. The chemistry between Blake, Pierre, and Johnson was excellent. Madeira was also good. My biggest complaint was that I found the rapid jumping back and forth in time sometimes confusing. And I wonder if the metaphor of hydro-tower-climbing interspersed throughout the film really worked. Nonetheless, "Brother" is one of the better Canadian movies I've recently seen.