Brat 2

I just watched Brat 2 after ordering a copy from a Russian video store in New York and I was not disappointed.

I saw Brat on the International Channel a couple of months ago and was blown away. Ever since I've had been trying to hunt down a copy of Brat 2. While these films are not technically perfect they have a rough hewn charm that no longer exists in most American films. (The lone exception from last year being Spike Jones' Adapation.) Then there's Sergei Bodrov Jr. it is a damn shame that he died last year (along with his film crew in an avalanche) because he was a major talent. He is so damn watchable and the unrelenting honesty of the Danila character makes for a compelling anti-hero in the brother movies that reminds this viewer of the great days of early Brando and Paul Newman.

Once again I will remind people to look at the actual vote rating for this film and ignore the silly IMDB weighted total. (The weighted average seems to be based on the strength of the Top 1000 voters whoever they are - it is not however a true weighted average in a classic math sense.) This film may not be perfect but it is one hell of a ride.

This was the first foreign film that I have ever watched and the first movie that I have ever wrote a review on. I admit that I did enjoy this film. The central plot of this film is cultural conflict between Russians and Americans. There is a barrier between language and a barrier toward what the morals and values of each culture is. The other plot in this film is "gangster", referring to the Russian Mafia.What I thought to be interesting in this film was that Danila acts as a "Robin Hood"-like character, in the fact that he takes money from the "rich" and gives to the "poor." Meanwhile, his brother steals from others and keeps it for himself.

I also enjoyed how the Russians were the "good guys" and Americans were the "bad guys" compared to how Hollywood always seems to make Americans the "good guys" and other countries and cultures the "bad guys".

All in all, I found this movie to be humorous and insightful from seeing American through Danila.

In my opinion, one has to live through the times depicted in this movie to truly appreciate it. If you think this movie was cheap, anti-American and racist, you missed the point. It would be like calling "The Godfather" racist and sexist. Brat 2 does a great job in giving an idea of what life is like in Russia and for russians in post-soviet world. It is a world of great uncertainty. A system that just fell apart with everyone in it left to their own devices. In many ways, Brat 2 is an inspiration and Danila is the hero or the bright light that captivates viewers by his humble demeanor and his good selfless deeds.

The beauty of the movie is that Danila is not played by Arnold, Vin Diesel or Tom Cruise. He looks like an average Russian and that is what makes it real. His military training is not about ripped muscles or fancy acrobatic moves. It is about working in real situations with low resources and odds stacked up against him. His personality is real and he is easy to relate to. He is a simple guy and he believes in good, something that many people lost their faith in.

America is definitely portrayed from Danila's eyes. It is not an attempt to portray the way America really is, but rather how it really looks to a Russian that just came to this country. In addition most of the movie involves russians in America.

In terms of ideologic statements, I don't think this movie tries to convey a message that Russians are about truth and Americans are about money. I think it leaves things the way they are that there are russians who believe in truth and Americans that prefer money, but i think there are enough of bad russians and good Americans in the movie...

Anyways, highly recommend the movie, thumbs up.

I usually read the 'Hated it' comments when I like a film, only to get a different point of view. This time though most of the comments just made me laugh. Racist? Insulting? Are you guys serious? I mean sure, there were a lot of parts that could be interpreted as such, but come on- they were in a context, they were supposed to be understood from a certain perspective. Sure there were many stereotypes, but that's not the same thing. Then again the characters expressing racist views- like Danila saying in Brat 1 he doesn't like Jews, or his brother shooting the Ukrainian ('You'll pay for Sevastopol!')- does not mean the film promotes those views. Maybe some people are hyper-sensitive and require immediate and thorough moral condemnation of every non-PC phrase uttered on screen. I for one like to watch films without the plot constantly reminding me of what is right and what is wrong, as if I was a kid- I can make the judgment myself. I welcome morally ambiguous characters, and I don't feel the urge to take offense at any given occasion. Also if this film was racist then so are 90% of American action-movies with their completely stereotypical and ridiculous portrayals of virtually every other nationality from Germans to Chinese. But we all get the point there. So what's wrong here?

On the other hand this was not necessarily a great movie. I loved it and I was entertained- but it obviously has its flaws. Compared to the first one it was certainly not very realistic- Pop star-girlfriend, shooting scenes, TV-reporter etc.- but I didn't feel they went out of line. Still its success is not due to its artistic quality, but due to that it's cool- which was of course the purpose and which is totally OK.

One final point. Maybe it is difficult for people in the West to understand the often exaggerated success that a film of this type can have in other countries- from Russia to Brazil, from Mexico to Turkey, or in Romania-my country. I have grown up watching mostly American movies, as did all of my friends, as did all my generation. I've never been to America and yet I've seen countless movies set in New York, LA or San Francisco, sometimes it seems I know those cities like I've walked their streets for real. And yet there are only about a handful of films about the places where I really do live; about the people here, about our point of view. Of course it feels great, of course it is something significant when an actually cool film is made locally- a mainstream film, with a little national spirit, with a little self-irony, with some making-fun-of-Americans well placed. It is still a strange feeling - for me at least- to see a mainstream movie with all the American action ingredients but with familiar places and familiar kinds of people who are speaking my language; to look at the whole thing as an insider. I guess this mix between the American way of entertainment and a kind of local pride is responsible for the success of a great number of films in many countries. I for sure liked Brat a lot partly because I could relate to the situations and the people very well.

I was amused by American reviews of the "Brat-2".

Americans were taken by surprise: how dare those Russians to make a film that depicts Americans as evil gangsters? How dare Danila to shoot Americans? This is not politically correct! It was clearly assumed that Russians are always the bad guys, whose only role in any film is cannon fodder to be shot by American Rambo.

Now "Brat-2" arrives, uncovering the horrifying truth: the bad guys are Americans! And it is OK to shoot them.

After years of Hollywood films depicting Russians as bad asses (no single Hollywood film showing Russians at least from a neutral point of view), the Russian cinema finally strikes back.

This movie delivered a long-awaited entertainment for Russian viewers.

It also proved complete lack of sense of humor of American viewers.