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Movies / On DVD / My Brother Is An Only Child
My Brother Is An Only Child

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My Brother Is An Only Child (2006)

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Reviews Counted:58

Fresh:50

Rotten:8

Average Rating:7/10

Consensus: Luchetti takes advantage of the storyline's historical context without sacrificing his cast's fine performances or the script's light wit.

Rated: Not Rated

Runtime: 1 hr 48 mins

Genre: Foreign Films

Theatrical Release:Mar 28, 2008 Limited

Synopsis: Already a smash in its native Italy, MY BROTHER IS AN ONLY CHILD, which was presented at this year’s Cannes and Toronto film festivals, reunites director Luchetti with longtime collaborators Sandro... Already a smash in its native Italy, MY BROTHER IS AN ONLY CHILD, which was presented at this year’s Cannes and Toronto film festivals, reunites director Luchetti with longtime collaborators Sandro Petraglia and Stefano Rulli, best known as screenwriters of the highly acclaimed “The Best of Youth.” Set in a small Italian town in the 60’s and 70’s, the film tells the story of two brothers who want to change the world – but in completely different ways. The elder, Manrico (Riccardo Scarmaccio), is a handsome, charismatic firebrand who becomes the prime mover in the local Communist party. Accio, (Elio Germano) the younger, more rebellious brother, finds his own contrarian voice by joining the reactionary Fascists. What starts as a typical tale of sibling rivalry becomes the story of the polarizing and paralyzing politics of those turbulent times and, the rift between the brothers is further intensified when Accio realizes that he loves his brother’s girlfriend, Francesca (Diane Fleri) who, like everyone else, is blind to Manrico’s increasingly dangerous ideas. An intensely cinematic and incredibly incisive film about the dreams and disillusionments of the 60’s and 70’s, MY BROTHER IS AN ONLY CHILD is set in the exact era of the groundbreaking early classics of Bernardo Bertolucci and Marco Bellochio. Not only does Luchetti pay explicit homage to those films – “Before the Revolution,” “Fist in the Pocket,” and “China is Near” – he comes very close to matching their beauty, intelligence, and youthful exuberance. --© THINKFilm [More]

Starring: Angela Finocchiaro, Luca Zingaretti, Elio Germano, Riccardo Scamarcio

Starring: Angela Finocchiaro, Luca Zingaretti, Elio Germano, Riccardo Scamarcio, Diane Fleri, Alba Rohrwacher, Massimo Popolizio

Director: Daniele Luchetti

Director: Daniele Luchetti
Producer: Riccardo Tozzi, Giovanni Stabilini, Marco Chimenz
Screenwriter: Sandro Petraglia, Stefano Rulli, Daniele Luchetti
Composer: Franco Piersanti
Studio: ThinkFilm

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Release:

Aug 5, 2008

[DVD Details]
 
 
  • The violent political unrest of 1960s Italy brings simmering tensions between two feuding brothers to the boiling point in this critically acclaimed film. Eager to distance themselves from each other, Accio (Elio Germano, Do You Like Hitchock?, Respiro: Grazia's Island) and older brother, Manrico (Riccardo Scamarcio, Romanzo Criminale, Three Steps Over Heaven), join opposing political parties but are tied together by their dysfunctional working-class family... and a beautiful girl named Francesca. As the turbulent decade comes to a close, the brothers slowly discover they're more alike than they thought, but that realization might come too late.
  • Source: Image Entertainment Inc.
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    Reviews for My Brother Is An Only Child

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    41 - 57 (sorted by date)
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    If the political backdrop is not alienating, Accio's actions might be. As he swings from one side of the pendulum to the other, he remains at arm's length

    Full Review Source: Film-Forward.com | comment Comment
    03/28/08
    Kent Turner
    Kent Turner
    Film-Forward.com

    My Brother Is An Only Child reminisces with improbable yet affecting fondness over the adolescents behind the -isms that would shape post-war Italy.

    Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
    03/27/08
    Anton Bitel
    Anton Bitel
    Channel 4 Film

    Despite its charged historical backdrop, [director] Luchetti keeps My Brother light and snappy without sacrificing narrative tension.

    Full Review Source: Time Out New York | comment Comment
    03/27/08
    Mark Holcomb
    Mark Holcomb
    Time Out New York

    [Director] Luchetti understands that the soul of Italy is found in its disparate people -- its brothers -- and particularly in its cinema tradition. Luchetti strides in the footpath of giants.

    Full Review Source: New York Press | comment Comment
    03/26/08
    Armond White
    Armond White
    New York Press

    It is almost a relief to find some ideological clarity in a film that unfortunately ends in complete political disillusionment on all sides.

    Full Review Source: New York Observer | comment Comment
    03/26/08
    Andrew Sarris
    Andrew Sarris
    New York Observer
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Luchetti's craftsmanship is evident in the movie's fluid on-location cinematography, excellent production design, and its wonderful period score.

    Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
    03/26/08
    Maria Garcia
    Maria Garcia
    Film Journal International

    [Actor] Elio Germano vitalizes the film: He's hyper-reactive, flickering between brash, bashful, playful, and awkward -- offering a Swiss Army knife performance that's diverse and yet totally unified.

    Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
    03/25/08
    Nick Pinkerton
    Nick Pinkerton
    Village Voice

    A spunky, memorable, and emotionally touching Italian film about the quest for personal transformation through politics.

    Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
    03/24/08
    Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
    Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
    Spirituality and Practice

    What makes My Brother Is an Only Child so alive and entertaining is how it dramatizes the endless tug-of-war between political conviction and personal experience -- the way the lines twist and blur and finally implode.

    Full Review Source: New York Magazine | comment Comment
    03/24/08
    David Edelstein
    David Edelstein
    New York Magazine
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    My Brother Is an Only Child moves so playfully and briskly you may not notice its glibness, which may have been director Daniele Luchetti's intent.

    Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | comment Comment
    03/23/08
    Ed Gonzalez
    Ed Gonzalez
    Slant Magazine

    Made in the tradition of Italian films documenting the effects of shifting political contexts on personal and family lives, Luchetti's intelligent work at once pays homage to and belongs to seminal films by Bertolucci (Before the Revolution) and Bellochio

    Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment Comment
    03/18/08
    Emanuel Levy
    Emanuel Levy
    EmanuelLevy.Com

    Politics takes a back seat in a jaunty comedy of a pair of brothers, one Communist and one Fascist, who come to a fraternal understanding too late.

    Full Review Source: Compuserve | comment Comment
    01/24/08
    Harvey S. Karten
    Harvey S. Karten
    Compuserve

    Handsomely shot and astutely cast, My Brother Is an Only Child should achieve the same attention and success accorded to The Best of Youth, whose scriptwriters worked with Luchetti on this one.

    Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
    01/18/08
    Richard Mowe
    Richard Mowe
    Boxoffice Magazine

    A handsomely-made, brightly charming pleasure.

    Full Review Source: Cinematical | comment Comment
    05/23/07
    James Rocchi
    James Rocchi
    Cinematical

    A fine and engaging study of two personalities, seemingly in sharp contrast, that prove awfully alike in the end.

    Full Review Source: Hollywood Reporter | comment Comment
    05/23/07
    Kirk Honeycutt
    Kirk Honeycutt
    Hollywood Reporter
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Surprisingly funny, good-looking and a true showcase for the talents of rising star Elio Germano.

    Full Review Source: european-films.net | comment Comment
    05/21/07
    Boyd van Hoeij
    Boyd van Hoeij
    european-films.net

    Helmer Daniele Luchetti keeps the mood light and winning.

    Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
    05/12/07
    Jay Weissberg
    Jay Weissberg
    Variety
     
     
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    Latest News for My Brother Is An Only Child

    March 25, 2008: Trailer & Poster review Opens in new window
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    July 24, 2007: Mio fratelle e figlio unico (My Brother is an Only Child) - preview & trailer Opens in new window
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