★★★
Thrust from a violent home into a brutal custody centre, a teenager learns to navigate a tough new reality and forge unlikely alliances to survive.
Classification: 15
An effective and provoking look into abuse, adolescence, and innocence, Julien Abraham's film starts very strong in its realistic depicting of life and power dynamics within a French juvenile system. While not as graphic or haunting, the implications both subtle and outright to child abuse and cycles of violence have the environment of Brother resemble the inner workings of the Emerald City wing in the crime drama series OZ. Harsher that say the communal absurdity of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, the loudmouthed ensemble of teenagers establish the authenticity of the setting but Abraham's film explores ideas of tribalism in a shifting hierarchy between main character Teddy, who finds himself incarcerated for killing his abusive father. Alongside the two antagonists Enzo, a hot-headed bigoted punk who runs a crew, and Mo a manipulative thug who begins to torment Enzo and Teddy to gain control through threat and violence.
The first two acts of Brother are a brilliant escalating of tension that whenever the film cuts away from Teddy's time in the juvenile centre such as the parallel storyline featuring Teddy's younger brother the film suffers. Trapping the audience in these inescapable situations whether its Teddy being bullied by Enzo, Mo exploiting Teddy, Mo riling Enzo, all these relationships feed into the toxic masculinity teenagers resort to appear tough. Every time the audiences is taken away to other storylines it lessens the impact of the isolation Teddy feels and his outbursts and subservience lose some of that greater meaning. It's still a compelling character and narrative but Abraham misses a beat to immerse his audience further into his film. While there is a support system of social workers all with their own methods on helping these characters rehabilitate, Brother depicts the reality as a survival of the fittest. Teddy's history with his father allows for MHD to tap into raw physical and psychological pain and the same applies to Darren Muselet's performances Enzo. No one is who they seem in the film, our main characters putting up fronts and parading bravado in the face of frightened insecurity. Just when the abuse and anger reaches a shocking boiling point (I now understand why so many people stopped watching 13 Reasons Why) the film does a 180 with Teddy leaving the institution.
The storyline is natural enough, focusing on Teddy's relationship with his brother and the brotherhood he has formed with Enzo during their tumultuous experiences in the juvenile centre. The film seemed to be building towards Abraham committing to the Lord of the Flies allegiances brewing between the ensemble especially in the wake of Mo's growing dominance among the inmates and staff. Najeto Injai as Mo as an electrifying presence that plays well of Muselet's equally volatile nature with Mo and Enzo's scenes being like waves crashing against jagged rocks. Injal inhabiting the same intensity as Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje's character from OZ, Simon Abedisi, who led prison riots, raped and abused prisoners, a gained control as leader of the prison population. Brother seems to be building to an all-out riot but explores the themes of abuse in a more open environment. While Enzo and Teddy are wildly different they are bonded by both being victims of abuse, Abraham rather than indulge in the violence of the characters, allows compassion and brotherhood to be explored in a rather predictable conclusion and resolution.
It can get graphic at times but its more reflective of Julien Abraham's approach to allowing the realities of these stories inform his film. It's an authentic film let down by a script that goes for the most standard dramatic conclusion rather than furthering to the raw intensity that made most of its runtime captivating. The performances don't lose their edge as MHD and Darren Muselet have great chemistry together but you can't help but feel Brother misses the mark with its disappointing ending that doesn't offer a satisfying conclusion to Teddy, Enzo or Mo's arcs.
Director: #JulienAbraham
Release Date: November 22nd 2019
Available to stream on Netflix
Trailer:
Written review copyright ©CoreyBullochReviews
Images from Youtube, Synopsis from Netflix
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