Brother's Shadow

2006
1h 31m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

Jake Groden is the black sheep of his family. Ankle deep in fish guts, he serves out his parole in Alaska. Then, after a decade of self-imposed exile, he is forced to return to his Brooklyn ... Read allJake Groden is the black sheep of his family. Ankle deep in fish guts, he serves out his parole in Alaska. Then, after a decade of self-imposed exile, he is forced to return to his Brooklyn family. He soon discovers that his perfect brother, Michael is dead, and he begins trying ... Read allJake Groden is the black sheep of his family. Ankle deep in fish guts, he serves out his parole in Alaska. Then, after a decade of self-imposed exile, he is forced to return to his Brooklyn family. He soon discovers that his perfect brother, Michael is dead, and he begins trying to take what Michael had- a beautiful wife, adoring son, control of the family furniture b... Read all

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.1/10

174

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 1 nomination total

Photos10

+ 4

User reviews12

6.1174

Featured reviews

10jessicalevin

Thought Provoking Indie Drama

I saw Brother's Shadow at the Tribeca Film Festival and loved it! Judd Hirsch and Scott Cohen are great as father and son. The film follows Scott Cohen from parole in Alaska back to his family in Brooklyn. He shows up there because his brother has died, and he embarks on a journey to slowly repair his estranged relationships with his brother's wife and child and his father who has never forgiven him for being the black sheep of the family. The story takes us deep into the hearts and minds of this family and allows you to more deeply understand the complexity of their lives. Also, the imagery of the woodworking business and the Brooklyn backdrop sets the tone for this rich and revealing family portrait.

9dweiner-2

Brother's Shadow Character development

One of the things that interested me most about this film is the way the characters and their associated histories are developed on the fly. I suppose the writers wanted us to gain interest in the characters by not force feeding their characters. The premise of using the art and craft of furniture design and construction was a unique theme and/or analogy for what families/siblings go through in life. The complexity of having a twin serve as a surrogate father and even husband added great tension towards making this film emotionally interesting. Also, although the story was not one that the masses might directly relate to (i.e. Jewish/twins/family business) the themes are fairly universal as every family has a black sheep in it. That made it very engaging.

10b_rel

A wonderful, sensitive, well directed film

I chose to watch this film at Tribeca based on Judd Hirsch and Scott Cohen and found it to be one of the best movies in the festival. Both leading actors deliver a well rounded sensitive performance that seems to match the characters on a personal level. The director did a great job bringing the characters and story to life with skill that is usually not seen in a first-time production.

One interesting aspect of this film is the love of woodwork and New York City (Brooklyn in specific). The movie revolves around the family furniture making business and weaves delicate cinematography of both carpentry and ordinary Brooklyn life again kudos to the director on this fine choice.

This is gem and I would whole heartedly recommend it (I'm sure it will make it to the screen).

10wheast

Superior film, seducing writers

Kudos to the writers of this film for creating a supremely engaging drama. The curious character development is indicative of a nuanced and well schooled writing team. The audience member cannot but help but to feel that (s)he must make wrenching emotional decisions pitting the cerebral against the libidinal. The viewer has an opportunity to develop the character herself, though her predictions are rarely validated.

Credit is also due to the filmmakers for breathing life into the setting. The wood-shop is transformed into a unique persona as the film unfolds, with its own traits, faults, a variety of highly charged relationships, and of course a fate inexorably tied to that of the other principals.

Make sure to catch this one at your local art-house.

6fmwongmd