critics consensus

Measured to the point of monotony, Brothers by Blood explores the generational impact of grief and violence in disappointingly tedious fashion. Read critic reviews

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Movie Info

In the City of Brotherly Love, eight-year-old Peter Flood helplessly watches on as his little sister is killed by a neighbor's reckless driving. Tormented with grief and resentment, his father finds revenge as the only solution, leaving lasting generational wounds. Thirty years later, Peter still wrestles with the guilt he feels over his sister's death and his father's vengeance. As he tries to distance himself from the criminal family business, his cousin, Michael, becomes more powerful in the hierarchy. Bonded by blood, neither man can escape violence as they are dragged further into a chilling cycle of betrayal and retribution.

Rating:

R (Some Violence|Brief Drug Use|Sexual References|Pervasive Language)
Genre:

mystery and thriller, drama, crime
Original Language:

English
Director:

Jérémie Guez
Producer:

Aimée Buidine, Nick Gordon, David Hinojosa, Julien Madon, Trevor Matthews, Christine Vachon
Writer:

Jérémie Guez
Release Date (Theaters):

Jan 22, 2021 limited
Release Date (Streaming):

Jan 22, 2021
Runtime:

1h 30m
Production Co:

Cheyenne Films, Killer Films, GapBusters, Brookstreet Pictures

Cast & Crew

Matthias Schoenaerts
Peter

Joel Kinnaman
Michael

Maika Monroe
Grace

Ryan Phillippe
Charley

Nicholas Crovetti
Young Peter

Antoni Corone
Bono

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Critic Reviews for Brothers by Blood

All Critics (27) | Top Critics (7) | Fresh (7) | Rotten (20)

A waiting game in which both the audience and the movie lose.

January 22, 2021 | Rating: 1.5/4 | Full Review…

Nick Allen
RogerEbert.com
Casual viewers, unwilling to sit through 90 minutes that feel like three hours, won't find much interest in such a somber, slow-burn approach...

January 22, 2021 | Full Review…

Peter Debruge
Variety
It feels rather plodding... failing to turn the boxer's conflicting loyalties into the stuff of crime-flick high drama.

January 22, 2021 | Full Review…

John DeFore
Hollywood Reporter
Director Jérémie Guez paints his Philadelphia-set gangster tale with authentic-enough colors, but he fails to find a convincing reason to tell this story, of these Philadelphia gangsters, at this time.

January 22, 2021 | Rating: D | Full Review…

Adam Graham
Detroit News
It's hard to say that any other edit would be better, because Brothers by Blood is one single, grey mass to the bone, an unfortunate use of a sterling cast and a book that deserves a more textured retelling.

January 22, 2021 | Rating: 2.5/5 | Full Review…

Richard Whittaker
Austin Chronicle
Everyone's miserable in "Brothers," and this joyless exercise from stylish director Jérémie Guez has nothing new to say.

January 21, 2021 | Rating: 2/4 | Full Review…

Randy Myers
San Jose Mercury News
Less a nuanced examination of small-time underworld behavior in the city of Brotherly Love and more a collection of lame tough-guy behaviors and dialogue...

February 21, 2021 | Rating: 1.5/4 | Full Review…

Steven Prokopy
Third Coast Review
Brothers by Blood is about the traits we inherit from our parents, our loyalties and debts, and the difference between the two. Beneath it all, a sad lyricism permeates the proceedings.

February 8, 2021 | Rating: 8/10 | Full Review…

Alex Saveliev
Film Threat
Brothers by Blood is essentially a cheap wannabe Martin Scorsese gangster film ... Like a lot of derivative mobster flicks, Brothers by Blood limits the female characters in very sexist and shallow ways.

February 1, 2021 | Full Review…

Carla Hay
Culture Mix
Gritty but engagingly introspective, this dark drama centres on a group of growly men whose lives are entwined with organised crime.

January 29, 2021 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall
Brothers by Blood tells a story of the way violence begets violence, a generational cycle its characters ultimately can't escape. Despite that compelling foundation, however, the movie feels too remote to get under the skin.

January 27, 2021 | Full Review…

Cynthia Vinney
CBR
Violent but blah mob drama has drinking, tons of language.

January 26, 2021 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…

Tara McNamara
Common Sense Media