Brothers by Blood (2020) User Reviews

Not bad, just really not good

[grlym-46849 · 5/10 · 1 February 2021]

Another east coast tough guy / mobster movie but with very little depth.

The acting is good for the most part. As is the filming.

It's just the plot and script takes you nowhere for way too long.

Misleading Trailer

[pos_itive · 4/10 · 26 January 2021]

This movie is no where near as intense as the trailer makes it out to be at all. Both Joel Kinnaman and Matthias Schoenaerts who are incredible actors and do a great job in this movie. Unfortunately the story is very dull and doesn't really go anywhere.

So much wasted potential

[mps-09977 · 5/10 · 9 February 2021]

I saw the negative user reviews and thought, "They could be wrong. I like the actors; I like the genre. This must be better than they're saying" Nope. They were right. So much wasted potential. It's watchable but the way they tell the story isn't that great and neither is the ending.

Paint drying has more action than this boring sloth story.

[Top_Dawg_Critic · 3/10 · 28 January 2021]

Welp, there goes 105 minutes of my life I'll never get back. What's worse, is that it felt like 3+ hours.

Experienced writer and newb director Jeremie Guez wrote the worst screenplay in the history of mobster films. How is this film classified as "action, crime, drama"? Zero action, 5 mins of crime and 100 mins of boredom. Who funded and greenlit this sloth? A 5th grade drama class could've come up with a better "mobster" film. There were tons of plot and technical issues, and the timeline back and forths made the already convoluted and pointless scenes seem less interesting than paint drying.

Matthias Schoenaerts spent more than half the film staring at the ground in silence (probably contemplating why he agreed to do this film), and the rest into space or shadow boxing (the point of this was??), with maybe a total of 5-10 minutes of dialogue. Either he didn't want to be there, or his character was written in as the most boring straight faced lamest mobster character ever developed.

The rest of the casting and performances were fairly decent, and the cinematography and score were good. It really had the markings to be a great film... it's just too bad the screenplay was so terrible. If you want to get even with someone, have them watch this and tell them it's amazing, to watch until the end, because it's worth it. They'll never speak to you again.

Dull Mob Movie

[timeblank · 3/10 · 24 January 2021]

Characters band together creating a mess. Story is hard to get into. Actors are mumbling and cussing. Sometimes the characters look the same. Like who is who? Scene jumps everywhere and the ending is just dark. I don't know what was the point. The film is short. Do not watch unless you want to purposely fall asleep.

Overly restrained

[masonsaul · 5/10 · 24 February 2023]

Brothers by Blood certainly has a impressive ambitions and a lot of thematic weight with its attempts to explore the cycle of violence and the inability to process grief and loss. Unfortunately they are let down by the films overly restrained approach which drains the film of any pace, nuance or emotional heft.

However, it's not without a few positives. Matthias Schoenaerts quiet and understated presence is always a pleasure to watch even if he's played this role one too many times and it contrasts Joel Kinnaman's loud and threatening persona rather well. The music by Séverin Favriau is really beautiful and threatens to give the film some actual life.

Well its not Bridgerton

[slydon13 · 6/10 · 26 January 2021]

It captured the essence of the city better than other movies and I enjoy that. Most movies set in Philly spend time at City Hall etc - where we bring tourists. I can't imagine Matthias Schoenaerts in a car chase - he is more Michael Corleone than Pacino.

Sure its was a slow burn but it was more realistic than most crime movies.

The story isn't original but the resolution at the end is more true to life.

I've wasted 2 hours on worse films

oh my god...

[ops-52535 · 3/10 · 23 January 2021]

Is words that i rarely use, but with such a significant lack of action in an actionthriller , youll have to search well to find anything as lame as this. its the sound of an examination at the proctologist that raves these streets, and the road towards the plunger and away towards the ocean is very short.

its a scriptless, motionless feardrama among the filipensian tribes that fights to rule the understory of the citys crimeworld. but the waiting game of mediocre acting that lasts well into the last third of the film, makes it meaningless unless they are able to make it emotional, which it isnt.so when the going gets tough and the tough hits the floor it wont lever the libra.

so if you will have a nice film to view, do not choose this one.a no recommend from the grumpy old man

Really solid

[haskel-72951 · 7/10 · 7 August 2022]

IMDB is full of idiots reviewing movies. Most of them can barely comprehend Looney Tunes, much less a film that requires actual thought. This is a very good movie, the performances are fantastic (especially Joel Kinnamon). This has little action, it builds its tension with real emotion. I wish more people were able to comprehend that.

Let Down!

[Draysan-Jennings · 5/10 · 23 January 2021]

This movie fell short when it could of been great. It was armed with a good story, actors and setting all lined up. Unfortunately, it just didn't formulate. The film started well then about half way in becomes dull. I just expected more, especially when it came to the ending. When all said and done this movie is was just ok.

Terrific Film (Don't trust the "Top Reviewers"

[seandiamondryan · 8/10 · 7 May 2022]

For some reason all of the Top Reviewers at IMDB seem to think that the movie needed more action because it's supposed to be an action film. As if this movie should be called the transporter 7 then they could've given it a higher rating. This is the type of movie that makes me wish I'd read the book. What a great story well acted it left me wanting more. Terrific film judge for yourself don't listen to these jerks. They think they're film critics.

Better than the reviews

[ben-j-ellis · 7/10 · 25 July 2022]

At the time of writing this has 4.9 stars and I think this film deserves more than that. About a 6.4 would be fair.

The main problem with this film for me is that the territory has been well explored before. 2014's "The Drop" being one example. Additionally, Matthias Schoenaerts is starting to get rather typecast, which is a shame because he's a fantastic actor with a lot of depth and talent.

That being said, if you enjoy dark, bleak, mob movies, or are a fan of "The Sopranos" then you'll get a solid hour and a half's entertainment out of this. Nothing new though but certainly better than a lot of the reviews here.

Ummm wut?

[nvaspider · 3/10 · 26 January 2021]

Well, we just finished the movie and are still unsure of what the plot is. I would rate it a 4, but had to give it a 3 to lower the existing rating a bit. Ummm, I think if I was in my twenties and high asf, it would be a decent film.

What a huge disappointment.

[dd3186 · 3/10 · 31 January 2021]

I kept waiting for something exciting or even mildly interesting to happen...and it never did. Mostly self indulgent acting and banality.

Plods along

[jpcjcpd · 4/10 · 30 August 2021]

I can handle a slow burn. But the writing and directing has to be on point and.....there has to be a burn.

The acting is great. The story is somewhat intriguing. But it is sooooo slow, with repetitive scenes trying to convey the sense of emotion or despair. But it never quite gets there.

The lack of character development also effects the pace. A lot of random scenes don't make sense (like why the boxers don't want to fight) and aren't explained or portrayed during the movie. No character development means no empathy - I didn't feel sorry for anyone involved. The relationship between the brothers/cousins is never explained.

And the ending leaves much to be desired.

Ignore the reviews

[jaydepalma · 5 February 2021]

I've no idea why this has received such poor reviews, I thought it was very good. The acting was great all round and the photography is excellent.. if you like the films of James Gray then you'll probably like this.. worth a watch

It was okay!!

[paul-lloydburrell · 6/10 · 23 January 2021]

The acting was good, and the production value is solid. Overall it just didn't have much going on, but it wasn't THAT boring. It seemed like it would pick up action wise, but it really didn't. It kind of reminded me of the Drop with Tom Hardy, but just not as good.

Euro pudding with no story

[guy-366 · 3/10 · 20 July 2021]

The number of people with producer credits has risen to 22 in this Brothers by Blood AKA The Sound of Philadelphia. The Belgian-Dutch-French coprod (tax shelter and other State subsidies) has some admirable actors (Schoenaerts and Kinnaman) playing psychopaths with little or no back story or subtext... The pic runs for only 82' without the end credits (which take another 4') but will almost bore you to death. Instead of spending the budget on producer fees, they should have thought of bringing in a screenwriter.

Worth to see

[monica_bellucci2004 · 7/10 · 31 January 2021]

I am a huge fan of Matthias and Joel, but the movie is all about Matthias character. Don't read the bad reviews, it is a good movie, slow pace kind, and Matthias acting nails the attention. A solid 7.

Good crime/noir movie with excellent acting

[thijsimdb · 8/10 · 29 January 2021]

Annoyed by these negative viewer-reviews that i read here , i really wanted to defend this movie.

No this is not a popcorn movie for people that want a lot of action, this goes deeper. If you are into the crime/noir movies you cannot miss this one. I've never seen a bad crime movie with Matthias Schoenaerts where he is headlining (i've seen all his movies from the last +10 years) and this counts also for this one. Great acting by Schoenaerts as always (the quiet/ troubled but also violent man) and Joel Kinnaman does a top-job as the psycho nephew. These 2 guys are in my opinion among the best actors of their generation, and I was superexcited to see them act together in a film. They deliver. The rest of the casting is also credible. For example James Nelson-Joyce was a new face to me and i hope to see him more on these types of movies. The story and directing is solid, the atmosphere is nice darkish and suspensefull. The only criticism i can give is that i don't see enough why Philadelphia is in the title. (except for the accents and some street-shots). It could also be another US city, and the film-title here in the Netherlands is "The Sound of Philadelphia". Im also interested in the book now, im gonna read it. Crime and noir fans, Schoenaerts and Kinnaman fans, go watch it!

Maybe one to watch again?

[jeroenijntema · 6/10 · 5 March 2021]

At some times the movie is indeed a bit slow. Great actors, lots of potential, but no real suspense, drama and very little action.

Still.. the movie catches you of start realizing it's really about Peter's ( Mathias S.) trauma he is still digesting after all these years, and his struggles to move on.

It's shot quite beautiful, sober, like a film noir and has a soundtrack that plays to the movie; never too much but on tune.

Overall a decent movie, with good acting and a story line that is different than expected, but still kind of delivers.

So best to watch and judge for yourself

Nope

[aprillove-92569 · 1/10 · 23 January 2021]

Who are these people reviewing these movies? Wow this one takes for ever to get to the f:;%ing point or its just me toooooooo slow for anything to pick up. Come on do NOT waste ur time. I've watched about 15 to 20 mins and nothing going on yet. Let's move on now. Do Not go there do not watch this do not waste your time.

Dysfunctional Fam

[jeroduptown · 4/10 · 25 September 2021]

What should have been a powerful film about generation pain and problems, instead comes out as a boring crime family just dealing. Great actors with decent acting - but the substance after the history is revealed doesn't hold up.

Painfully boring

[valenzuela_mario · 2/10 · 27 March 2021]

Lacking confusing. Character that plays Peter has no stage presence and is boring to watch. Story is lacking. Don't watch.

All wrong! It could've been great

[borowiczlucky · 3/10 · 11 June 2021]

I will keep it short. Being from an Irish family involved on both sides of the law this is completely wrong. They never establish what they're really fighting over. Matthias doesn't resemble Irish. The cuts going back in time are awful. If you want a good brother/mob movie Irish or Italian there is a plethora. This just was a bore plain and simple.