Brotherhood (2010 film)

Last updated
Brotherhood
Brotherhood film.jpg
Directed byWill Canon
Written byWill Canon
Doug Simon
Produced byChris Pollack
Steve Hein
Tim O'Hair
Jason Croft
Starring Jon Foster
Trevor Morgan
Lou Taylor Pucci
Arlen Escarpeta
Cinematography Michael Fimognari
Edited byJosh Schaeffer
Music byDan Marocco
Distributed by Phase 4 Films (US)
Cinema Management Group (International)
Release date
  • February 18, 2010 (2010-02-18)
Running time
81 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Brotherhood is a 2010 American thriller film directed by Will Canon and co-written by Doug Simon and Canon. The film is about a fraternity initiation that goes horribly wrong and stars Jon Foster, Trevor Morgan, Arlen Escarpeta and Lou Taylor Pucci. Brotherhood premiered at the 2010 SXSW Film Festival, where it won the festival's Audience Award.

Contents

Plot

Frank (Jon Foster) is an active member of fictional fraternity Sigma Zeta Chi, and hazes pledges for initiation by forcing them to believe they are going to rob convenience stores. Adam (Trevor Morgan) and Kevin (Lou Taylor Pucci) are pledges who go with Frank to rob the stores. Before they enter the store, another active brother gives them the money and reveals it was a break designed to test their bravery. However, due to confusion over which stores to stop pledges, Kevin is not stopped and actually tries to rob the store; Kevin is shot in the shoulder as a result. Frank finds out of the mix-up and attempts to stop Kevin but is too late. With Adam's help, he subdues the store clerk, Mike (Arlen Escarpeta), who is a high school friend of Adam. They return to the fraternity house and clear a party to take care of Kevin's wounds, but Frank orders Adam and Graham (Luke Sexton) to go back to the store, recover the security tape, and check on Mike. When returning to the store, they find that the security camera does not work, but Mike is reluctant to tell the police a lie to cover their tracks.

Scared by Mike's attitude, Adam and Graham kidnap him and take him back to the house. Frank refuses taking Kevin to the hospital, fearful that the police will learn about the night's actions, and instead calls Bean's (Jesse Steccato) medical professor to take care of Kevin. Adam tries to blackmail Mike by secretly recording an elicited confession, but Mike stops talking once he discovers the recorder. Kevin's sister Emily (Jennifer Sipes) appears and angrily threatens to call the police over an unrelated prank. As she leaves, she is involved in a car accident with Bean's professor, who suffers a concussion and is rendered unable to help Kevin. With time running out and Kevin losing blood, Frank orders Mike's torturing to ensure his cooperation. At the same time, Officer Jennings (Jeff Gibbs), who is a former member, discovers Kevin but decides to stay quiet. Adam becomes insistent in taking Kevin to the hospital and tells Frank he can get leverage on Mike after hearing money is missing from the store. Adam is able to get Mike to admit he stole the money, but Mike will only cooperate if they return the stolen money and clear his name. After a tense standoff with a nervous clerk, Adam and Frank succeed in returning the money, and Frank allows them to drop off Kevin in the hospital; they claim it is a hunting accident.

Frank says the night is a victory but Adam sees otherwise and decides to leave the fraternity, angry at their arrogance and callousness. After Adam punches Frank, the other members catch Adam and begin to beat him harshly, as Frank claims that their brotherhood and loyalty helped them get out of trouble. Another fraternity member, Jackson (Chad Halbrook), returns to the house and remembers that a pledge was locked into the trunk during the party; when they open the trunk, they discover the pledge has died from alcohol poisoning. Adam finally calls the police and tells them everything, which leads to the arrest of Frank and others.

Cast

Production

Brotherhood is director Will Canon's first feature. The film was based on his short film, Roslyn, which in turn was inspired by stories told by a friend. Canon wanted to make a genre film in the style of Roger Corman's exploitation films of the 1970s. He cited his influences as Joe Carnahan, Paul Thomas Anderson, and Michael Mann. Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, and Richard Linklater also served as references for his film. [1] Brotherhood was shot entirely on location in Arlington, Texas. [2]

The fictional Sigma Zeta Chi fraternity house is the former Delta Upsilon fraternity house on campus at the University of Texas at Arlington. Soon after filming was finished, the house was nearly destroyed in an electrical fire. The house has been fully renovated since then.[ citation needed ]

Release

Brotherhood was theatrically released on March 11, 2011 in New York; February 18, 2011 in Dallas, TX; February 25, 2011 in Los Angeles, CA;[ citation needed ] and in the United Kingdom on January 17, 2011. [3] Brotherhood was released straight-to-DVD in Australia on March 11, 2011.[ citation needed ]

Reception

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 54% approval rating with an average rating of 5.1/10 based on 26 reviews. [4] Nigel Floyd of Time Out London rated it two out of five stars and criticized its lack of credibility, though he calls it "beautifully shot". [5] Tim Robey of The Telegraph also criticizes the film's credibility. [6] Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian rated it three out of five stars and stated that it is "entertaining in a nasty way." [7] Variety 's Joe Leydon favorably compared it to classic film noir and praised the film's uniqueness. [8] Robert Abele of the Los Angeles Times criticized the lack of likable characters and entertainment value, though he says there are some tense scenes. [9] Writing for The New York Times , Neil Genzlinger calls it a "fast moving thriller" and praises the pacing. [10] Peter Martin of Twitch Film also praises the pacing, though he stated that "botched heist" films have become predictable. [11]

Awards and nominations

Brotherhood won Audience Awards at the 2010 SXSW Film Festival, [12] 2010 Dallas International Film Festival, [13] and 2010 Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival. [14] Brotherhood also won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2010 New Hampshire Film Festival. [15] At the 2010 Gotham Awards Brotherhood was nominated for the first Festival Genius Audience Award. [16] The New York Times awarded it with a NYT Critics' Pick. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Delta Lambda Phi</span> American gay collegiate fraternity

Delta Lambda Phi is an international social fraternity for gay, bisexual, transgender and progressive men. The fraternity was founded in 1986 in Washington, D.C. It offers a social environment and structure similar to other Greek-model college fraternities. It was the first, and as of 2013 the only, national fraternity with an emphasis on gay and bisexual men.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phi Gamma Delta</span> North American collegiate social fraternity

Phi Gamma Delta (ΦΓΔ), commonly known as Fiji, is a social fraternity with 139 active chapters and 13 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Jefferson College, Pennsylvania, in 1848. Along with Phi Kappa Psi, Phi Gamma Delta forms a half of the Jefferson Duo. Since its founding, the fraternity has initiated more than 211,000 brothers. The nickname FIJI is used commonly by the fraternity due to Phi Gamma Delta bylaws limiting the use of the Greek letters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lou Taylor Pucci</span> American actor (born 1985)

Lou Taylor Pucci is an American actor who first appeared on film in Rebecca Miller's Personal Velocity: Three Portraits in 2002. Pucci had his breakthrough leading role in Thumbsucker (2005), for which he won a Special Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival and the Silver Bear for Best Actor at the Berlin Film Festival. Pucci then starred in The Chumscrubber (2005), Fast Food Nation (2006), The Go-Getter (2007), Explicit Ills (2008), and Carriers (2009). Pucci had starring roles in the 2013 Evil Dead remake, as well as The Story of Luke (2013) and Spring (2014).

South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has continued growing in both scope and size every year. In 2017, the conference lasted for 10 days with the interactive track lasting for five days, music for seven days, and film for nine days. There was no in-person event in 2020 and 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in Austin; in both years there was a smaller online event instead.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kappa Alpha Psi</span> International historically Black fraternity

Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. (ΚΑΨ) is a historically African American fraternity. Since the fraternity's founding on January 5, 1911, at Indiana University Bloomington, it has never restricted membership based on color, creed, or national origin though membership traditionally is dominated by those of Black heritage. The fraternity has over 160,000 members with 721 undergraduate and alumni chapters in every state of the United States, and international chapters in ten countries.

<i>The Go-Getter</i> (2007 film) 2007 American film

The Go-Getter is a 2007 American independent road film directed and written by Martin Hynes. The film stars Lou Taylor Pucci, Zooey Deschanel, and Jena Malone. In the film, 19-year-old Mercer (Pucci) steals a stranger's car to embark on a road trip to find his estranged brother and tell him that their mother has died. He communicates with the car's owner, Kate (Deschanel), via her cell phone while he travels.

Dana Adam Shapiro is an American film director, best known for his directorial work on the 2006 Academy Award-nominated documentary Murderball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kappa Sigma</span> North American collegiate fraternity

Kappa Sigma (ΚΣ), commonly known as Kappa Sig or KSig, is an American collegiate social fraternity founded at the University of Virginia in 1869. Kappa Sigma is one of the five largest international fraternities with currently 318 active chapters and colonies in North America. Its endowment fund, founded in 1919, has donated more than $5 million to undergrads since 1948. In 2012 alone, the Fraternity's endowment fund raised over $1 million in donations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jenny Shakeshaft</span> American actress and model (born 1984)

Jennifer Marie Shakeshaft is an American actress and model living in Los Angeles, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Surfer Blood</span> American indie rock band

Surfer Blood is an American indie rock band from West Palm Beach, Florida, United States, currently signed to Kanine Records, formerly signed to Joyful Noise Recordings and Warner Bros. Records. The band currently consists of four members: John Paul Pitts, Tyler Schwarz (drums), Mike McCleary, and Lindsey Mills.

<i>Final Destination 5</i> 2011 American supernatural horror film

Final Destination 5 is a 2011 American 3D supernatural horror film directed by Steven Quale and written by Eric Heisserer. It is the fifth installment in the Final Destination film series and a direct prequel to Final Destination (2000). Final Destination 5 stars Nicholas D'Agosto, Emma Bell, Miles Fisher, Arlen Escarpeta, David Koechner, and Tony Todd, and follows a young man who has a premonition and saves a group of people from death when a suspension bridge begins to collapse. However, they soon learn that they cannot escape Death's plan.

Founded in 2010 by Travis Stevens, Snowfort Pictures is a boutique film production company specializing in the development, financing and production of commercial genre films.

<i>The Brotherhood</i> (film series) 2001 American film

The Brotherhood is a series of homoerotic horror films directed by David DeCoteau. The first film in the series is also known as I've Been Watching You in the United Kingdom.

<i>The Newest Pledge</i> 2012 American film

The Newest Pledge is a 2012 comedy film written and directed by Jason Michael Brescia. The film is about the hard-partying Omega fraternity and their struggles to raise a baby that they find on their doorstep. The film was released in North America by Lionsgate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gamma Phi Gamma</span> American collegiate fraternity at Wilmington College

Gamma Phi Gamma (ΓΦΓ) is a local social fraternity at Wilmington College in Ohio. It was established in 1907.

Geoff Marslett is an American film director, writer, producer, animator and actor. His early career started with the animated short Monkey vs. Robot which was distributed internationally by Spike and Mike's Classic Festival of Animation on video and Spike and Mike's Sick and Twisted Festival of Animation in theatres. More recently he directed several successful narrative feature films including MARS, as well as producing and acting in the experimental documentary Yakona. He appears onscreen in Josephine Decker's Thou Wast Mild and Lovely which was released theatrically in 2014. He currently resides in Austin, Texas and splits his time between filmmaking and teaching at the University of Colorado at Boulder.

<i>Demonic</i> (2015 film) 2015 film directed by Will Canon

Demonic is a 2015 American supernatural horror film directed by Will Canon and written by Max La Bella, Canon and Doug Simon from a story by La Bella. The film stars Frank Grillo, Dustin Milligan, Cody Horn and Maria Bello.

<i>Whitney</i> (2015 film) 2015 American TV series or program

Whitney is a 2015 American biographical film directed by Angela Bassett based on American singer Whitney Houston and her turbulent marriage to R&B artist Bobby Brown that premiered on Lifetime in North America on January 17, 2015. Whitney received mixed-to-positive reviews from critics, with DaCosta's performance as Houston and Bassett's direction being praised but Escarpeta's casting and the film's accuracy being criticized. Bassett was nominated at the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Miniseries or TV Film and at the Black Reel Awards for Outstanding Director in a Television Miniseries or Movie.

<i>Burning Sands</i> (2017 film) 2017 American film

Burning Sands is a 2017 American drama film, directed by Gerard McMurray, from a screenplay by McMurray and Christine Berg. It stars Trevor Jackson, Alfre Woodard, Steve Harris, Tosin Cole, DeRon Horton and Trevante Rhodes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epic Pictures Group</span> Film and television production company

Epic Pictures Group is an American independent film and television studio engaged in the development, financing, production and distribution of film and television. Epic Pictures produces, finances, and distributes approximately twenty-thirty independent genre films a year.

References

  1. ↑ "SXSW '10 | Genre Unleashed: Will Canon's "Brotherhood"". Indiewire . 2010-03-08. Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  2. ↑ Tam, Julie (2011-02-17). "Arlington Man Shoots Action Flick in Hometown". KXAS-TV . Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  3. ↑ "Brotherhood in UK Cinemas January 17, 2011". 2011-01-03. Retrieved 2011-01-03.
  4. ↑ "Brotherhood (2011)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 30 October 2013.
  5. ↑ Floyd, Nigel (2011-01-11). "Brotherhood". Time Out London . Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  6. ↑ Robey, Tim (2011-01-13). "Brotherhood". The Telegraph . Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  7. ↑ Bradshaw, Peter (2011-01-13). "Brotherhood". The Guardian . Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  8. ↑ Leydon, Joe (2010-03-26). "Brotherhood". Variety . Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  9. ↑ Abele, Robert (2011-02-25). "Movie Review: 'Brotherhood'". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  10. 1 2 Genzlinger, Neil (2011-03-10). "'Brotherhood': Pledge Night Gone Wrong". The New York Times . Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  11. ↑ Martin, Peter (2011-05-17). "Brotherhood DVD Review". Twitch Film . Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  12. ↑ McClintock, Pamela (2010-05-19). "Phase 4 nabs Brotherhood". Variety . Retrieved 2010-05-19.
  13. ↑ Vognar, Chris (2010-11-26). "Movies: It's a Wrap for the Dallas International Film Festival". Dallas Morning News . Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  14. ↑ Carlton, Bob (2010-09-27). "It's a Wrap: Birmingham's Sidewalk Film Festival Ends with 230 screenings". The Birmingham News . Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  15. ↑ "Congratulations to the 10th Annual NHFF Winners". New Hampshire Film Festival. 17 October 2010. Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  16. ↑ Cox, Gordon (2010-11-10). "Nominees for Gotham Awards Unveiled". Variety . Retrieved 2010-11-10.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.