So I enter the theatre, expecting to find a small crowd, taking into consideration it's Monday evening and most kids are back in school. To my utter amazement, the theatre has been transformed into a low budget day care center. From newborns to preteens, the seats were filled with juveniles. Although the movie is entitled "Four Brothers", common sense combined with the previews would lead one to believe that it's not necessarily a family flick. Then again, maybe the obvious "R" rating means repeat to others, while it signifies restricted under the age of 17 without a parent or guardian, to me.
"Four Brothers" stars Mark Wahlberg (Bobby), Tyrese (Angel), Andre 3000 (Jeremiah), and Garrett Hedlund (Jack) as the Mercer Brothers, partially rehabilitated delinquents, who unite at their old stomping ground in Detroit, to bury their adoptive Mom after her untimely death. At first glance, the likelihood of a single white female embarking upon the responsibility of raising 4 misfits is unbelievable, almost unconceivable. After further deliberation, you realize it truly is a bad dream come true.
Mark Wahlberg, a veteran to violent flicks, plays Bobby, the eldest brother, a no nonsense terrorizer, quick to inflict pain and slick racial epithets on all who cross his path. Walhberg is supported by a cast of fresh "acting blood", namely Tyrese and Andre 3000. Not only did they abandon prior claims to fame, but they've also opted to insert their government tags.
Tyrese Gibson switches from singing "Sweet Lady" in English to two-stepping to La Bamba with his resident La Vida Loco. Andre Benjamin becomes a married father of two, whose chariot is nothing less than a Volvo SUV, equipped with only the bare preppy needs (remove spinning rims, add car seats). Andre's acting debut is decent, given his background. His role is one that allows him to change from the respectable, peacemaker of the bunch, to a calculated renegade, who would sacrifice his life to protect that of his family.
Upon realizing the murder of their mom was not just a store robbery gone awry, rather that of a contract killing, the Brothers Grimm opt to avenge their mother's murder by, perhaps, committing a few of their own. Instead of relying on the boys in blue, led by Lt. Green (Terrance Howard) they opt to take matters into their own hands. Visits to various hotspots, bold takeovers and subsequent beat downs of individuals deemed worthy of such, lead them not only to the individual who orchestrated the killing of their mom, but also to the belief that the life of one of the brothers' is not as crystal clear as it had seemed.
The main villain is a British actor by the name of Chiwetel Ejiofor, aka Victor "Sweet". This man, of a slightly smaller stature, is infamous for making his "flock of fools" humbly perform humiliating acts. With the attitude of a power hungry-no nonsense gangster, Sweet is the mastermind behind the plot to execute Mom. Numerous dead bodies later, the Mercer Brothers meet the object of their rage. A showdown is inevitable, and provides a twist to an otherwise expected ending.
What They Say
"Despite its basic stupidity, it's the most compelling and audience-pleasing of Singleton's sell-out movies.. The casting is hit-and-miss. OutKast's Benjamin and "Troy's" Hedlund are weak, but Gibson is very appealing and the movie powers along on a strong lead performance by Wahlberg, who has never seemed more confident, commanding or scruffily charismatic."
- William Arnold, Seattle Post-Intelligencer
"It’s got everything you’d want to see in a film – violence, revenge and a hot Latina girlfriend. Singleton takes the old fashioned western story, complete with a corrupt landowner and tainted lawmen, and he turns out a sharp, popping urban thriller. It’s shot like a Peckinpaw western, only they’re hiding behind junker cars and ramshackle buildings instead of mesas and cactus."
- Kevin Carr, 7M Pictures
"Singleton gets another kind of tension from a pair of incredibly executed action sequences, one a midnight car chase on dangerously icy streets and the other an out-manned, out-gunned firefight that could be straight out of a Sergio Leone picture.. But despite the film's strengths.. Four Brothers" falls apart completely in the last act."
- Rob Blackwelder, Splicedwire
"If you haven't figured out that "Four Brothers," the new John Singleton film, is an intentionally scrappy throwback to mid-'70s action flicks, the scene in which the Mercer brothers' childhood home is shot up by gangsters should set you straight.. Don't get me wrong -- this is solid meat-and-potatoes stuff. But Singleton may want us to think he's stooping to conquer, when it really feels like he has finally found his level."
- Ty Burr, Boston Globe
My Opinion
This movie comes with enough gunpowder and shell casings to provide free advertisement for the NRA (National Rifle Association). Although many of the scenes are hard to fathom, from highspeed snowy car chases at midnight to nonstop shootouts, the movie provides an interesting look into a family of brothers, who bring a Mafia sidewalk to an 8mile neighborhood.
After the closing credits, I pondered a few questions. What truly was the reason behind the murder of Mom? Where were the police during hour-long shootouts? More importantly, why does Taraji Henson always have the role of somebody's baby mama?
Overall it was a good movie. It reveals the return of John Singleton, resident ghetto filmmaker. Although the plot differs, from that of his previous creations, the murders of numerous black males remains constant. They say, the more things change, the more they stay the same. In this instance, the change was only in venue, not necessarily in the end result.
