Four Brothers poster & wallpaper

André Benjamin, Garrett Hedlund, Josh Charles

Four adopted brothers come together to bury the woman who raised them. At the funeral, the brothers discover that their mother may have been murdered and they want revenge.

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83% liked it

367,861 ratings

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52% liked it

125 critics

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Directed by: John Singleton

Release Date: August 12, 2005

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DVD Release Date: December 20, 2005

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Stats: 16,516 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (16,516)

  • garyX
    November 5, 2009
    garyX
    A saintly old lady is executed during a liquor store hold up and her four foster sons reunite to hunt down her killers. Four Brothers is exactly the kind of braindead action thriller that holds extreme violence up as the answer to all of life's problems as we follow Marky Mark an...( read more)d co on their rampage through the streets of Detroit using nothing but their wits. And thuggery, torture and huge quantities of lead, of course. There is no character development, little meaningful dialogue and the testosterone fuelled mix of male bonding and dodgy sentimentality (the thanksgiving scene is one of the most cringeworthy things I have ever seen) belies quite a staggering lack of subtlety or sophistication, even by Hollywood action movie standards. Singleton throws in enough well handled action scenes to stave of boredom, but in the end it's just another meat-headed American Idiot pleaser.
  • 76Majikat
    May 4, 2009
    76Majikat
    A very average revenge story, watchable, but nothing special.
  • PvtCaboose91
    June 15, 2008
    PvtCaboose91
    "Evelyn was in this city for a long time. She saw a lot that was terrible, but she stayed hopeful. She still believed that things were getting better, sometimes despite all evidence. And that's a hard thing to do, stay hopeful. Even when you can't find a reason."


    ...( read more)Four Brothers is a gripping, gritty, brutal, emotionally powerful action-packed urban drama from Oscar-nominated director John Singleton (who reached success with his debut drama Boyz n the Hood). Unfortunately, upon release I judged the book by its cover and awarded this film the dismissive cold shoulder with little intention of approaching it. I didn't know much about the plot, but nonetheless the poster looked stale and didn't flare an interest in my mind at all. As it turns out, Four Brothers is an exceptional crowd-pleaser that surpassed all my expectations.

    The film is a testosterone-fuelled drama with an equal mix of humour, action and drama. This is the furthest thing from your typical fluffy action film that boasts someone like Van Damme or Steven Seagal as the film's primary acting talent. There is violent action aplenty (one of the film's primary action scenes I already want to see again), but what makes this film so excellent is that it's not just a string of continuous action scenes. The filmmakers also boast an impressive amount of emotionally-driven moments that are fuelled by the powerhouse performances. From a simple plot synopsis, one would probably think that this is a straightforward, predictable clichéd-ridden story of achieving retribution. On the contrary, the results are simply stunning: director John Singleton has great skills when behind the camera, bringing this action-packed drama to life with visually remarkable consequences. The film is well-paced, taut, stylised and violent - the filmmakers never attempt to hold back on displaying heavy violence and bloodshed.

    In essence, Four Brothers is a modern-day Western. But this is not your ordinary Western: this is an urban-infused, Western-style drama set in the inner city of snow-gripped Detroit. The typical spaghetti Westerns would portray a lone gunman riding into town to face the bad guys head-on. In this case, the film trades in the single gunman approach and instead places four men as an alternative. The four central protagonists are the adopted Mercer brothers: two white, two black - Bobby (Wahlberg), Angel (Gibson), Jeremiah (Benjamin) and Jack (Hedlund). After the brothers lived through their childhood, they all went their separate ways. Their mother is a much respected elderly citizen named Evelyn Mercer (Flanagan). Evelyn is a well-liked lady with a penchant for helping the lives of troublesome young kids. One night, Evelyn's tranquil life is disrupted when an apparent grocery store robbery results in her being gunned down in cold blood. Her funeral attracts the four brothers who hadn't been together since their childhood period concluded. These estranged brothers reunite and seek revenge on whoever is responsible for the murder of their mother. The police don't appear to be doing anything to solve the case, so the brothers take the law into their own hands and commence their pursuit for justice.

    As the plot thickens and the investigation lengthens, it becomes apparent that the "accidental death" of their mother might not have been unintentional after all.

    Four Brothers is visceral filmmaking that satisfied my every requirement for entertainment. Like I stated previously, the film has lots of action but it's not a ludicrous string of action with no heart. At the core of the film there is heart and an important sense of camaraderie. Running at approximately 100 minutes, the film successfully packs one heck of a wallop! It's tightly edited and encompasses a lot to examine underneath while not spending an overwhelming amount of time on unnecessary drama. To establish the characters there's no extensive dialogue scene; instead they are introduced when they are being reunited at the funeral and the cops discuss the history behind each individual. Without being corny or poorly written, this is an extremely creative way to feed the audience everything they need to know before proceeding into the nitty gritty.

    I was especially fond of the atmosphere the film creates. The use of carefully-chosen music (mainly hip-hop) gives the unmistakable impression of an unsavoury neighbourhood. Leave it up to John Singleton: a man who completely understands the style, genre and background. You can also expect a thread of unpredictability: the audience will be lead down a continuous path of red herrings until the film's wholly satisfying conclusion. Another completely admirable element is that the filmmakers are not afraid to be relentless. One character is treated with about as much sentimentality as the next. They're never afraid of the consequences when one man is killed off.

    One of the main qualities of the film is the strong sense of companionship and solidarity between the four lead characters. Mark Wahlberg is an outstanding actor who infuses a sense of brutality and conviction in his portrayal. So to speak, his role is that of the older brother who feels compelled to be an authority figure for his younger siblings. Wahlberg's character Bobby is able to endeavour an older-brother-type take-charge attitude that helps bring his three brothers together in their search for their adoptive mother's killers through the callous streets of Detroit. This is a veteran Hollywood actor amidst a fundamental cast of unknowns who mainly have a background in the music industry (a notable fact is that Wahlberg also has a past in the music business). Tyrese Gibson, Andre Benjamin and young Garrett Hedlund are the other three brothers who appear to be equally as concentrated as Wahlberg. All four actors deliver amazing performances and fall squarely into the "anti-hero" category. The excellent chemistry between the four leads adds to the feel of the film. Altogether they are the Western-style lone gunman out to execute the guilty party. Terrence Howard and Josh Charles are both quite extraordinary as the cops who aren't willing to allow the four brothers to exercise their own form of street justice.

    Overall, Four Brothers is a film one would never expect to be so excellent. At the end of the day it's only flawed faintly in the script department in the sense of over-length and a few hollow lines of dialogue. Okay, I know what you must be thinking. Rappers being actors...doesn't sound too promising does it? Before I watched the movie I must admit I was afraid of this and the thought that the film might be drowning in hip-hop music that will make you want to slice your ear-drums out! You don't need to worry at all, as Four Brothers does not submit to these anticipated flaws. The film is a compelling drama permeated with an equal dosage of humour, drama and action. To quote a reviewer, this is a "gritty urban drama". Bottom line: an excellent Friday night at the movies!
  • Showrogan
    May 27, 2008
    Showrogan
    A bond like no other...a hang em high, take no prisoner's kinda movie with a strong cast...
  • RCCLBC
    April 30, 2008
    RCCLBC
    I'm sure this is "Masterpiece Theater" for some people, but for me...it was all I could do to sit through this cliche riddled mess of a film. I can normally sit through justa bout anything.

    It was as if it couldn't decide on what it wanted to be...

    Parts of it felt almost ...( read more)like a 1970's "blackploitation" film, but without any of "coolness" or the "soul".

    Parts of it felt like a 1970's "After School Special", full of (almost nauseatingly) saccharine moments, but without any of the "kitsch" that made those things bearable.

    I think Singleton did his best, with what he had (it's the action scenes that got it the star and a half)...but most of the writing was just SO bad. There is only so much a Director can do.

    On a positive note, I didn't have to waste any money or valuable Netflix time on this. A friend of ours (who LOVES this film) let us borrow it. It was returned without discussion.

    Now if only I could find a way to get the 109 minutes of my life back that were wasted on viewing this film.
  • bronzlox1
    November 19, 2009
    bronzlox1
    I love Marky Mark but that's really the only thing I enjoyed. I don't like depressing movies.
  • whitneknott
    November 13, 2009
    whitneknott
    this movie is good as shit, I've already watched it 5 times today... its that good.
  • yoshismash
    November 2, 2009
    yoshismash
    esta movie m mata jaja
    auk ia m la c
  • mimipheonix
    October 31, 2009
    mimipheonix
    they are soooo cool!
    wish i can fight like bobby and angel....
  • fungirot
    October 30, 2009
    fungirot
    Wahlberg takes care of business and his business is revenge!
    Say hi to your mother for me.

View All Four Brothers Reviews

Critic Reviews

August 12, 2005
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

What holds us are the actors, including Terrence Howard as a cop who grew up with the brothers. full review

August 12, 2005
Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle

As a vivid, bloody piece of escapist gimmickry, it works. full review

August 12, 2005
Ty Burr, Boston Globe

Brothers is a faux-low-budget revenge thriller, pure and simple. There's nothing special about it, and that's what's refreshing. full review

August 12, 2005
Kyle Smith, New York Post

Moment to moment, the mood flips from crime drama to weird high jinks; the boys spend so much time wearing their mother's clothing and playfully accusing each other of being gay that it's not clear th... full review

August 11, 2005
Colin Covert, The Minneapolis Star Tribune

An unsavory and unsatisfying blend of bone-splintering sadism and doofus slapstick comedy. full review

August 11, 2005
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

[Four Brothers] connects with underlying moral currents in the way Westerns used to, back before greed, fear, anger and 'society' provided action movies with all the motivation they needed. full review

View more Four Brothers reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments

  • icedtoffee22
    April 16, 2009
    icedtoffee22
    "sweet revenge"..!bitch
  • pavacri23
    April 24, 2008
    pavacri23
    after i watched the second time i liked it more. pretty cool movie.
  • bria1stl
    November 5, 2007
    bria1stl
    I love this movie it is definatley in my top 5.... Thanks for putting Tyrese in this film.. He is great
  • aliceboycey
    June 6, 2007
    aliceboycey
    luv dis film x
  • KingsofLeonBabe
    May 2, 2007
    KingsofLeonBabe
    This movie is sooooo awsome!!It kicks butt.Garrett Hedlund is sooooooo flipping HOT!!Oh my gosh is he gorgeous!!Andre Benjemin is an awsome actor I had only ever heard of him as a singer(Outkast)and I remember I always liked their music.Mark Wahlberg did an awsome job in this movie,I cried when he cried because he is so good at showing emotion.Garrett Hedlund had to die!!Why may I ask do the hot guys ALWAYS end up dieing?!I love his voice,and his hot deep belly laugh in this movie.:)Trese Gibson did a great job in this movie...La Vita Loca...:)haha so funny.This is an awsome movie it is funny and suspensful and it is very,very sad.
  • SamandDeanLover
    May 2, 2007
    SamandDeanLover
    I love this movie soo much...it's great and very action packed and suspenseful. Not to mention that Garrett is very hot..
  • laukennedy
    May 1, 2007
    laukennedy
    One of my favorite movies of all time. Mark, Garrett, Tyrese, and Andre were AWESOME. The winter car chase was the best scene and Mark was hilarious. I'd give it one millions stars if I could!
  • ivancica1991
    April 4, 2007
    ivancica1991
    This film is great,the best!! I love all actors in this film,but most Garrett Hedlund! He is the best!! zop!
  • italianreina
    March 8, 2007
    italianreina
    This Movie was awesome. Couldn't wait till it came out on DVD. Kept my attention threw the whole movie. BEST part was when MARC WAHLBERG put a smack down on dude. A Movie to watch OVER AND OVER.
  • mercerchica
    January 8, 2007
    mercerchica
    this is a GREAT movie!Garrett Hedlund did an awesome job!
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Four Brothers Trivia

  • Who acted in these movies ?? - The departed - Four brothers - the perfect storm - the italian job  Answer »
  • Four brothers (Mark Wahlberg,Tyrese Gibson, Benjamin,Garrett Hedlund) set out to avenge the murder of their mother, which they suspect may not have been the convenience-store robbery it looked like.  Answer »
  • Name the movie where Mark Wahlberg and his adopted brothers fight to kill all people who murdered their mother.  Answer »
  • In the movie "Four Brothers," what are the brothers trying to do throughout the movie?  Answer »
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