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Movies / On DVD / Brothers in Arms
Brothers in Arms

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Brothers in Arms (2004)

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Reviews Counted:15

Fresh:11

Rotten:4

Average Rating:6.2/10

Rated: Not Rated

Runtime: 68 mins

Genre: Education/General Interest

Theatrical Release:Aug 27, 2004 Limited

Synopsis: The fierce debate leading up to a presidential election involves some tough talking on both sides of the political divide. But when John Kerry and George W. Bush went into battle in the buildup to... The fierce debate leading up to a presidential election involves some tough talking on both sides of the political divide. But when John Kerry and George W. Bush went into battle in the buildup to the 2004 race to the White House, the usual political mudslinging contained a formidable war of words, and most of the words were about war. The Vietnam War has long cast a shadow over American politics and Kerry's tenure as a soldier in Vietnam meant that the subject was put firmly back on the political agenda once he decided to run for president. Filmmaker Paul Anderson picked up on this, and decided to trace Kerry's service record during the war, discovering that the senator served as commander of a six-man team aboard Patrol Craft Fast 94, which traversed the Mekong Delta river in 1969. Anderson tracked down the surviving five members of the boat crew--including Kerry--and offers their various recollections in BROTHERS IN ARMS. Doubts have been cast over Kerry's service record, but the glowing testimonials from his fellow crew members quickly dispel any lingering ambiguities surrounding his time in the jungle. Entirely partisan in its approach, Anderson's film adroitly profiles the blossoming authority of the young John Kerry, and offers a tantalizing glimpse of a man heading immutably towards a future life in the political spectrum. [More]

Starring: John Kerry, David Alston, Mike Medeiros, Del Sandusky

Starring: John Kerry, David Alston, Mike Medeiros, Del Sandusky, Gene Thorson

Director: Paul Anderson

Director: Paul Anderson
Studio: First Run Features

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Release:

Sep 7, 2004

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for Brothers in Arms

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1 - 16 (sorted by date)
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the talking heads format just doesn't make for compelling film, despite its timeliness

Full Review Source: Old School Reviews | comment Comment
10/19/04
John A. Nesbit
John A. Nesbit
Old School Reviews

Serviceable, not high ranking.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
09/10/04
E! Online

The vets tell the truth, by any reasonable measure, and then the filmmaker stirs the elements as filmmakers always do, whether partisan or neutral.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment Comment
09/07/04
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Inevitably, the film has the air of an extended campaign ad, but that doesn't make its subjects and the stories they tell any less compelling.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Reporter | comment Comment
09/05/04
Frank Scheck
Frank Scheck
Hollywood Reporter
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Alexander, a political writer and radio host, gets riveting, emotional confessionals from the veterans.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
09/03/04
Jonathan Curiel
Jonathan Curiel
San Francisco Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

For a feature film, this clearly partisan documentary about the Swift boat crew that served under John Kerry in Vietnam is pretty slight, but for a campaign commercial -- which is what it feels like -- it's pretty long.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
09/03/04
Michael O'Sullivan
Michael O'Sullivan
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Will this film do Kerry any good, or the Swifties any harm? My bet is: Not a bit, one way or the other.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
09/03/04
Stephen Hunter
Stephen Hunter
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The documentary is well edited, well paced, and feels genuine. It's educational, important and enjoyable independent of the Kerry campaign.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Report Card | comment Comment
09/02/04
Ross Anthony
Ross Anthony
Hollywood Report Card

Basically a longer, less slick version of the official Kerry profile unveiled at the Democratic National Convention.

Full Review Source: New York Post | comment Comment
08/27/04
Lou Lumenick
Lou Lumenick
New York Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Tellingly, [John] Kerry is a much more compelling speaker during a 1970s protest rally than in the contemporary footage, where he carefully chooses his words.

Full Review Source: Film-Forward.com | comment Comment
08/27/04
Kent Turner
Kent Turner
Film-Forward.com

The four men offer powerful eyewitness testimony against the subsequent charges that Kerry didn't deserve his Silver Star for courage and his three Purple Hearts.

Full Review Source: New York Daily News | comment Comment
08/26/04
Jack Mathews
Jack Mathews
New York Daily News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: AV Club | comment Comment
08/26/04
AV Club

A respectfully modest effort that allows Kerry and his Swift boat comrades to tell their stories in their own voices.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
08/26/04
Robert Koehler
Robert Koehler
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Filmed before the Swift boat veterans brouhaha, Paul Alexander's partisan documentary is effective filmmaking.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
08/26/04
Dave Kehr
Dave Kehr
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The movie's main contribution is its fresh look at the Vietnam War, being refought in the Kerry-Bush presidential campaign at the time of the film's release.

Full Review Source: Christian Science Monitor | comment Comment
08/26/04
David Sterritt
David Sterritt
Christian Science Monitor

As for the candidate, like Tony Wilson in 24 Hour Party People, he's wisely content to remain a supporting character in his own life story.

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
08/24/04
Joshua Land
Joshua Land
Village Voice
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
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