The Sisters Brothers

Western related media on the big screen somehow manages to find ways to catching the attentions of audiences, despite how much Hollywood has been leaning towards more mainstream big budget entertainment in the current decade. A number of reasons for this can be exploring a period of time that doesn't rely on CGI creatures, capturing the feeling of escaping to the old fashioned days of outlaws and bounty hunters, or even an opportunity to see some recognized actors portraying a role in that environment. In regards to my experiences with the genre in the recent years, aspects of it I found intriguing were in Logan, Wind River, and Hell or High Water (which are all either neo-Westerns or modernized versions that take place in current US settings). This brings us to The Sisters Brothers, directed/co-written by Jacques Audiard and is based on the novel of the same name. It premiered at the film festivals in Venice and Toronto in September and has been slowly getting its wider release into more theaters as the weeks move forward. It popped up on my radar after hearing some positive reviews about it and I have seen very little marketing for it. I entered the auditorium to see if it deserved to overlooked by the release of highly anticipated Oscar releases and left it very satisfied as well as moved by this surprising experience.

Plot: The story follows a pair of bounty hunter brothers who are tasked with looking for a chemist during the time of the California Gold Rush in 1850. The journey that takes place has good pacing as it explores the interactions the between the brother and that of their target with another individual. In addition to that, there's a balance of dark comedy and harshness with their environment, which certainly adds obstacles to the mission where hazards adds to the unforgiving nature of that era. There are moments of levity where characters are introduced to new inventions to their time to counter against hardships encountered. While the story and journey as a whole is entertaining and intriguing to watch, one aspect that should have been explore further would be the arc involving the chemist and the other individual as adding a little more screen time would have fleshed them out a bit more (though it's somewhat understandable since the titular brothers are the focus).

Characters: The people to focus on are Eli (John C Reilly) and Charlie (Joaquin Phoenix). Eli is the level headed of the brothers to where he’s readily cautious about suspicious things but isn’t without his minor  psychological issues that add to a moment or two of humor. John is great in showing modern audiences that he doesn’t need Will Ferrell’s lazy comedy to showcase his excellent dramatic chops. Charlie is the wild alcoholic of the duo whose actions cause problems for those around him and is motivated by greed (basically similar to Robert Pattinson from Good Time except with a higher body count). Joaquin is entertaining to watch as his stubbornness and charisma compliments his character well. The chemistry between these two is excellent as their banter feels realistic and conveys the complexity of their bond to a tea. Honorable mentions go to Herman Warm (Riz Ahmed) and John Morris (Jake Gyllenhaal) for their great performances and interesting dynamic.

Overall Consensus: The Sisters Brothers shines through great performances, humorous dark comedy, balance between drama and levity, fascinating dynamics, and harsh environment. ⭑⭑⭑⭑1/4🎟🍿 Runtime: 2 hours 1 minute R

Reasons to watch it: You like any of the aforementioned actors. You like westerns with a balance of dark comedy and drama. You don’t mind seeing environmental hardships in a journey.

Reasons to avoid it: You dislike any of the aforementioned actors. You have grown tired of the western genre. You aren’t a fan of dark comedy being mixed with drama.