The Wind That Shakes the BArley
The Sons of KAtie Elder
Raging Bull
The Darjeeling Limited
The Straight Story
It’s arguably a film, but Sam Shepard’s True West – which aired as part of PBS’ American Playhouse series – is a gem of brothers in conflict.
Legends of the Fall
The Godfather parts I & II
The Royal Tennenbaums
Before the Devil Knows Your Dead
Step Brothers?
But more seriously, Slumdog Millionaire or The Proposition
The Lion King, Big Night and, not so much quarreling as diverging, The Public Enemy.
Let’s add Adaptation and American History X, too, and save myself from the embarrassment of a double post.
I second Adaptation, great movie.
Um… Basket Case.
That thing a few years ago with Billy Bob Thornton and Bridget Fonda. THE SIMPLE PLAN?
Thornton is superb in this otherwise sketchy film.
The Proposition
Before The Devil Knows Your Dead
the one where matt damon is stuck to that guy from talk soup?
Brothers of the Head
Slapshot – The Hanson Brothers
Oceans Eleven – Virgil and Turk Malloy
Trading Places – Randolph and Mortimer Duke
A River Runs Through It – Paul and Norman Maclean
Isn’t the gold standard here maybe Visconti’s ROCCO E I SUOI FRATELLI? Some of them get along, some of them don’t. But lots of brothers.
Tom Wilson, you know your shit. That film of True West will stay with me to my dying day. I mean, John Malkovich! And when the mother comes in and sees the wrecked house and just says in this deadpan, almost senile way, “This is worse than being homeless.” Best treatment of Shepard I’ve ever seen.
But now, who can forget Abel Ferrara’s The Funeral? Three mobster brothers — one, Christopher Walken, the pater familias trying to hold shit together; two, the mentally deranged Chris Penn, and three, the anarchist, the pervert, the handsome christ figure but the dregs of the family line, Vincent Gallo. The plot gets murky, but I’ve always thought that it was Penn who had Gallo killed in a fit of paranoia after Gallo threatens to burn down his bar; then, out of guilt, shoots the corpse in the coffin and, well, it just gets worse from there…
And yes, MMoore, Rocco and His Brothers — good choice. Italian cinema seems to offer a lot of examples of this (let’s not forget Al Pacino’s “I know it was you” kiss on Fredo’s lips). But the scene in the abandoned lot where the boxer brother forces Alain Delon to watch him rape his girlfriend certainly rates a nine at least on the Oh, brother! meter. Lastly, a guilty pleasure of mine — Joy Ride, where you just keep wishing that nice-guy Paul Walker would tell Steve Zahn to fuck off. I mean, they don’t even look like brothers.
On the Waterfront — the scene is the cab with brothers Terry (Marlon Brando) and Charley (Rod Steiger) — brotherly love and pain and regret, it’s almost tangible.
Where was my brain? Of course, JEB, the Hanson brothers ( i’m chuckling ). Although they don’t actually quarrel, R. Crumb’s brothers in the documentary “Crumb” are two of the strangest guys on film. What’s frightening is that I know some people who are very similar.
The big lebowski reminded me of a brother relationship between Walter and the dude. “Will you just take it easy”, Says the dude
Calmer than you are", say Walter. Adaptation absolutely!
Brat – one brother betrays the other, but Danila still saves him because he is family.
The opening sequence set to Billie Holiday’s “Gloomy Sunday” and use of color contrast in Abel Ferrera’s “The Funeral” is reason enough to give the film a watch.
My first thought was the previously mentioned On the Waterfront, so I will go for the two brothers in East of Eden – the great role for James Dean, where brotherly jealousy has tragic consequences..
Amorres Perros
Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (sorta with some spats between Jesse/Frank and Charley/Bob)
City of God (sorta)
There Will Be Blood (not really)
Do the Right Thing (Turturro and the other dude in Sal’s Famous)
Thirteen Days (some disagreements between JFK/RFK, not so much quarreling)
Tombstone
Rudy
Money Train
Good Will Hunting (Afflecks)
Bottle Rocket
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (Robin & Will Scarlet)
Bob—you mention East of Eden (which I’m about to start reading—excited)—but I’ll bring another Steinbeck in and say Of Mice and Men.
Not a traditional brother vs. brother relationship, but it’s exactly that heartbreaking relationship that IS the story. Malkovitch/Lieutenant Dan did a great job in the movie.
Ed Zwick’s Defiance, which seems to cast the conflict as a Moses/Aaron dichotomy
Speaking of Christopher Walken, how about At Close Range, featuring Sean and Chris Penn as on-screen brothers, with Walken as their father?
Rocco and His Brothers
The black ballon
Whats eating Gilbert Grape
Willi Patton
looking for good examples of brothers quarreling in film. something that captures the distinct relationship of siblings, and the various grievances than can come up between them. any ideas?