The Brothers McMullen Reviews
Lanning :
Super Reviewer
May 3, 2006
A great writing debut for Burns. Nice dialogue. The banana scene is definitley memorable, bookbat. I wonder if the older folks get, the more sobering this movie might become. I'd love to see more from Jennifer Jostyn and Maxine Bahns.
iLeo
Super Reviewer
December 26, 2007
Great movie!
karyn8sons
April 12, 2008
I didn't dislike it. Not exactly. But I didn't really like it either. These guys are some of the worst humanity has to offer where relationships and committment to females are concerned. But as brothers, I was impressed with the interplay and the way they had each other's backs. I have 8 sons so I've seen what real brothers do, especially if there are more than two of them. That part of this movie was real for me so I liked it. I just didn't care for the way they kept dickin' around with the women that SHOULD have been important to them!
Most guys will probably like and relate to this movie. Most women probably will not like the storyline. Take your chances and make your own choice about this one ~
Didn't make either of my lists - best I've ever seen or worst I've ever seen. Couldn't get a spot on most mediocre either.
I didn't dislike it. Not exactly. But I didn't really like it either. These guys are some of the worst humanity has to offer where relationships and committment to females are concerned. But as brothers, I was impressed with the interplay and the way they had each other's backs. I have 8 sons so I've seen what real brothers do, especially if there are more than two of them. That part of this movie was real for me so I liked it. I just didn't care for the way they kept dickin' around with the women that SHOULD have been important to them!
Most guys will probably like and relate to this movie. Most women probably will not like the storyline. Take your chances and make your own choice about this one ~
SonnyLighstrome
November 29, 2007
Ed Burns first and best movie. Maybe because it's before he started getting casted in big hollywood movies or sleeping with actresses, but this is when his vision seemed more real. This is a movie about relationships, and it is FAR more real....and yet funny at times....than most Hollywood made movies on the subject.
MovieGuruDude72
August 13, 2007
Even though this was an independent, low-budget darling, I thought it was just a so-so movie. I guess I need more intelligent conversation than what this film offered.
June 22, 2007
Ed Burns. Yuck. Another director who people never seem to notice CAN'T DIRECT ACTORS. (See also: Smith, Kevin)
April 7, 2006
I love this movie. "Man is like a banana," hehe. I know it is an older film, but I think it is brilliant. Three irish brothers reflect on the death of their father, religion, and relationships as they are reunited for their father's funeral. They each separately find a way to live a little more, and it is great.
January 12, 2013
Nice philosophical move about, love, lust, recovering Catholics and relationships. Keep watching. The first 15 minutes are hard to get through. Keep watching. It will be worth your time!
The Critic
August 12, 2012
This look at the relationship between three brothers struggling with their identity might've been made on a low budget, but it certainly delivers the goods. The performances are solid here, particularly from writer/director Edward Burns and Mike McGlone, portraying relatable characters. A screenplay grounded in reality keep the proceedings accessible.
May 25, 2012
To this day, The Brothers McMullen is still Edward Burn's best movie. Best writing, incredibly real and something most every guy can relate to. That is if you didn't make a life commitment before 23 years old.
DebbieKat
January 3, 2010
I've caught this film several times, now. The characters are well-crafted and you really feel for them and their situations. The dialog is realistic and the movie really does a good job analyzing each character's relationships.
Virus
January 13, 2009
I still find it amazing how this film was made. Look it up. It really gives hope to anyone who wants to become a filmmaker. The acting is amateurish at best and Ed Burns is by far the strongest. Good script.
eamonn286
June 12, 2007
A pretty good movie, espicially since it was filmed on a shoestring buget. This is Ed Burns' first film at looking into relationships and family matters. It may help to have an Irish Catholic background to appriciate this movie! This was really a cute indie comedy, but one complaint would be that the movie was too predictable from the beginning.
A. Khan
October 25, 2005
The Brothers McMullen is about a family of three sons of Irish immigrants who stay in America after their mother decides to return to Ireland following her husband's death, and have problems in relationships of them own. The oldest brother has been married for five years and while his wife wants children, he's contemplating an affair. His youngest brother wants to escape from his Jewish girlfriend, who wants him to settle down with her and perhaps tries to trap him with a pregnancy, and the middle brother (Burns, the director of the film) never wants a serious relationship, when one chances upon him. All three stories are realistic and compelling, and all three, along with the film's score, really examine Irish Catholic values in our American society. And to me, that was the film's charm - Brothers McMullen seriously questions the basic cultural beliefs of the Irish Catholic faith. From the mother who leaves an abusive husband she was with out of the Catholic condemnation of abortion, to the children who seem incapable of having a serious relationship, Brothers McMullen is culturally rich but not overly so, and yet critical at the same time. In a lesser film, there would be all kinds of crap about Irish cooking and numerous attempts to make the cultureless American public envious of the brothers' heritage. Instead of taking that obvious route, this film honestly looks at what it means to be Irish Catholic in our society, and specifically, what effects this has on one's relationships. The thing is, it doesn't do this with heavy-handed drama. The movie is actually a pretty light, slice-of-life approach to the more complex subject of cultural identity. We don't like or hate any of the brothers, really, we just really get to know them, honestly. And for me personally, what amazed me is how much of their story is universal, and yet how much of it is specific to their culture, and thus comments on it. Brothers McMullen is another movie that illustrates how easy it is to make a good film. Just tell a story about what happens, and execute it well. The acting is great, the characters and dialogue are interesting - it is the quintessential "good" independent film.
While I didn't think [u]The Brothers McMullen[/u] (Edward Burns, 1995) was as good as Siskel and Ebert thought it was at the time, I still really enjoyed this flick.
The Brothers McMullen is about a family of three sons of Irish immigrants who stay in America after their mother decides to return to Ireland following her husband's death, and have problems in relationships of them own. The oldest brother has been married for five years and while his wife wants children, he's contemplating an affair. His youngest brother wants to escape from his Jewish girlfriend, who wants him to settle down with her and perhaps tries to trap him with a pregnancy, and the middle brother (Burns, the director of the film) never wants a serious relationship, when one chances upon him. All three stories are realistic and compelling, and all three, along with the film's score, really examine Irish Catholic values in our American society. And to me, that was the film's charm - Brothers McMullen seriously questions the basic cultural beliefs of the Irish Catholic faith. From the mother who leaves an abusive husband she was with out of the Catholic condemnation of abortion, to the children who seem incapable of having a serious relationship, Brothers McMullen is culturally rich but not overly so, and yet critical at the same time. In a lesser film, there would be all kinds of crap about Irish cooking and numerous attempts to make the cultureless American public envious of the brothers' heritage. Instead of taking that obvious route, this film honestly looks at what it means to be Irish Catholic in our society, and specifically, what effects this has on one's relationships. The thing is, it doesn't do this with heavy-handed drama. The movie is actually a pretty light, slice-of-life approach to the more complex subject of cultural identity. We don't like or hate any of the brothers, really, we just really get to know them, honestly. And for me personally, what amazed me is how much of their story is universal, and yet how much of it is specific to their culture, and thus comments on it. Brothers McMullen is another movie that illustrates how easy it is to make a good film. Just tell a story about what happens, and execute it well. The acting is great, the characters and dialogue are interesting - it is the quintessential "good" independent film.
coconorma
September 13, 2005
[b]Un Chien Andalou[/b] ? Salvador Dali and Luis Bunuel collaborated in the 20s to make this bizarre silent film that I can?t say I really liked all that much. It was interesting, but not as great as anything I?ve ever seen by Bunuel or Dali. 7/10
[b]The Brothers McMullen[/b] ? I watched this on the recommendation from one of my film professors, and the fact that it was one of the first breakout indie films. It was made for nothing, sold at Sundance, and grossed over ten million bucks, which is great for an early nineties film. It?s about an Irish family that?s having some problems with the relationships in their own individual lives. It stars and was directed by a young Edward Burns.
[b]My Life as a Dog[/b] ? I can barely remember this film as I watched it over a month ago I think. I was actually thinking I was renting [i]Man Bites Dog[/i], which is a mockumentary I believe, so it was quite a shock when I got a Lasse Hallstrom ([i]Cider House Rules, Chocolat[/i]) drama about a kid who goes to live with his uncle after his mother falls ill. It was good, but I don?t really remember much else. Highly forgettable, but it?s got your usual Lasse Hallstrom charm. 8/10
[b]Safe[/b] ? Julianne Moore is brilliant in this Todd Haynes film. This is the second Haynes film I?ve seen, the first being one of the favorites of a couple years ago, [i]Far From Heaven[/i]. I really liked the story of [i]Safe[/i], about a woman who grows to feel sick when exposed to everyday chemicals such as window cleaner, car exhaust, and really anything of the sort, and seeks treatment for it. 8/10
[b]Un Chien Andalou[/b] ? Salvador Dali and Luis Bunuel collaborated in the 20s to make this bizarre silent film that I can?t say I really liked all that much. It was interesting, but not as great as anything I?ve ever seen by Bunuel or Dali. 7/10
[b]The Brothers McMullen[/b] ? I watched this on the recommendation from one of my film professors, and the fact that it was one of the first breakout indie films. It was made for nothing, sold at Sundance, and grossed over ten million bucks, which is great for an early nineties film. It?s about an Irish family that?s having some problems with the relationships in their own individual lives. It stars and was directed by a young Edward Burns.
[b]My Life as a Dog[/b] ? I can barely remember this film as I watched it over a month ago I think. I was actually thinking I was renting [i]Man Bites Dog[/i], which is a mockumentary I believe, so it was quite a shock when I got a Lasse Hallstrom ([i]Cider House Rules, Chocolat[/i]) drama about a kid who goes to live with his uncle after his mother falls ill. It was good, but I don?t really remember much else. Highly forgettable, but it?s got your usual Lasse Hallstrom charm. 8/10
jennifer's picks & pa
July 13, 2005
[i]The Brothers McMullen,[/i] the directorial debut of Edward Burns, is a chatty little drama about Irish American brothers. When this came out, it was pretty much adored by critics and indie fans, however I just didn't find it engaging enough to fall in love with. Smart dialogue and decent performances. Just an okay movie in my book.
[i]Braveheart. [/i]A lot of testosterone and violence, but not a lot of character development. Think Rambo in a kilt.
[i]To Die For.[/i] Director Gus Van Sant has been all over the map, starting out as kind of a maverick, lefty film director before moving on to mainstream films, and then back again. [i]To Die For [/i]has him moving to the center, yet it retains enough of an edge to appeal to his earliest fans. Starring Nicole Kidman as Suzanne Stone, a bored middle class woman hoping to making it in television. She lands a job at as a weather reporter at a local access station, and then gets the opportunity to do a teen show, bringing Jimmy (Joaquin Phoenix) into the picture. The unhappily married Suzanne then schemes up a plan to use Jimmy to take out her husband Larry (Matt Dillon). This film is a bit underappreciated in my opinion as it works really well as satire. The manipulative Kidman shines in her role, and the great supporting cast (Dillon, Phoenix, Illeana Douglas, Casey Affleck, Buck Henry) is quite enjoyable.
[i]Dangerous Minds,[/i] stars Michelle Pfieffer as a white teacher who accepts a job in an inner city school teaching troubled teens. You know the rest of the story, only it's been done much better than this. Avoid.
[i]Nine Months, [/i]starring Hugh Grant and Julianne Moore, plays like a very bad television sitcom minus the commercials. My advice? Turn the sound down and gawk at Hugh.
Just some numbers and brief words on some 90's movies I still remember pretty well.
[i]The Brothers McMullen,[/i] the directorial debut of Edward Burns, is a chatty little drama about Irish American brothers. When this came out, it was pretty much adored by critics and indie fans, however I just didn't find it engaging enough to fall in love with. Smart dialogue and decent performances. Just an okay movie in my book.
[i]Braveheart. [/i]A lot of testosterone and violence, but not a lot of character development. Think Rambo in a kilt.
[i]To Die For.[/i] Director Gus Van Sant has been all over the map, starting out as kind of a maverick, lefty film director before moving on to mainstream films, and then back again. [i]To Die For [/i]has him moving to the center, yet it retains enough of an edge to appeal to his earliest fans. Starring Nicole Kidman as Suzanne Stone, a bored middle class woman hoping to making it in television. She lands a job at as a weather reporter at a local access station, and then gets the opportunity to do a teen show, bringing Jimmy (Joaquin Phoenix) into the picture. The unhappily married Suzanne then schemes up a plan to use Jimmy to take out her husband Larry (Matt Dillon). This film is a bit underappreciated in my opinion as it works really well as satire. The manipulative Kidman shines in her role, and the great supporting cast (Dillon, Phoenix, Illeana Douglas, Casey Affleck, Buck Henry) is quite enjoyable.
[i]Dangerous Minds,[/i] stars Michelle Pfieffer as a white teacher who accepts a job in an inner city school teaching troubled teens. You know the rest of the story, only it's been done much better than this. Avoid.
[i]Nine Months, [/i]starring Hugh Grant and Julianne Moore, plays like a very bad television sitcom minus the commercials. My advice? Turn the sound down and gawk at Hugh.
