Four Brothers (film)

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Four Brothers
Four brothers.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJohn Singleton
Written by
  • David Elliot
  • Paul Lovett
Produced byLorenzo di Bonaventura
Starring
CinematographyPeter Menzies Jr.
Edited by
Music byDavid Arnold
Production
company
Distributed byParamount Pictures[1]
Release date
  • August 12, 2005 (2005-08-12)
Running time
109 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States[1]
LanguageEnglish
Budget$30 million[2]
Box office$92.5 million[2]

Four Brothers is a 2005 American action film[3] directed by John Singleton. The film stars Mark Wahlberg, Tyrese Gibson, André Benjamin and Garrett Hedlund as four adopted brothers who set out to avenge the murder of their adoptive mother. The film was shot in Detroit, Michigan and the Greater Toronto Area.[4] It has been described as blaxploitation-influenced.[5][6]

Plot[]

The seemingly random murder of their adoptive mother, Evelyn Mercer (Fionnula Flanagan), at a Highland Park, Michigan convenience store, brings four brothers back home to Detroit, Michigan to find out what happened. The oldest is a lifelong criminal, Bobby (Wahlberg), the third oldest is a former US Marine, Angel (Gibson), the second oldest is family man Jeremiah (Benjamin), and the youngest is rock musician Jack (Hedlund). Originally under the impression the crime was a simple robbery-gone-wrong, the brothers chase down and interrogate a false witness to the police, after which the brothers discover that the robbery was a cover for a hit put out on Evelyn. The brothers track down the pair of hired guns who shot and killed Evelyn, and after refusing to give up any information, the two hitmen are then unceremoniously executed by the enraged Bobby and Angel.

The next day, Detroit Police Lieutenant Green (Terrence Howard) and Detective Fowler (Josh Charles) confront the brothers about the murders. Lieutenant Green warns the brothers that their interference with Evelyn's case is ill-advised, and that it will eventually put them in over their heads. After confronting Jeremiah about the revelation of his failing business and benefiting from Evelyn's life insurance, the brothers are treated to a somewhat different version of events. Jeremiah informs his brothers that his construction company was failing precisely because he was not getting involved with gang lord Victor Sweet (Chiwetel Ejiofor), and that for a project to succeed he had to pay off the right people, which he initially failed to do. In his effort to restore his business and relieve pressure from himself, he tried to pay off Sweet's henchmen. As for the life insurance, Jeremiah explains that the money went directly to him for his daughters, because he paid all of Evelyn's bills while his other brothers were not around.

Back at their home, during a confrontation with Jeremiah, Sweet's men attack the brothers and Jack is shot and mortally wounded during the attack and subsequent gunfight. Bobby and Angel manage to fend off and kill the gunmen with Bobby’s shotgun and Angel using dual pistols. Bobby finds one of the gunmen still alive and questions him about who sent them. He almost spares the gunman but is offended and angered when the gunman mumbles "Thank God" and shoots and kills him anyway. When Lieutenant Green arrives, he tells the brothers not to worry about any legal ramifications, assuring the brothers that it will go down as self-defense given the circumstances. He also informs the brothers that Evelyn filed a police report regarding Victor Sweet and his involvement in Jeremiah's affairs, and his partner, Detective Fowler, passed that report on to Sweet. Green warns the brothers to stay out of the matter and let him handle Fowler and then they will work together on Sweet. Later at a bar Green confronts Fowler, hitting him and ordering Fowler to hand in his badge. After they walk out of the bar, Fowler angrily shoots and kills Green and calls it into dispatch claiming two assailants had fired upon Green.

The remaining brothers devise a plan to buy Victor Sweet off with the $400,000 from their mother's life insurance. When Sweet accepts, Angel sets off for Fowler's. Arriving at Fowler's, he subdues him. Jeremiah then goes to meet Sweet, while Angel's girlfriend, Sofi, heads to the police station, where she tells the police that Angel is planning to kill a police officer. Hearing the sirens in the distance, Fowler believes they are coming for Angel, until Angel opens his jacket revealing a wire. Angel claims the whole conversation was taped, including Fowler's admission that he killed Green. The police arrive at Fowler's in full force, at which point Fowler gets the upper hand on Angel. With his gun pointed at Angel's head, Fowler tells the officers outside to back off, and despite their pleadings they are actually there to rescue him, Fowler decides his fate is sealed, opens fire on the officers who return fire, killing him.

Meanwhile, at frozen over Lake St. Clair, Jeremiah meets with Sweet, who reveals that he intends to kill him. Then Jeremiah reveals that the $400,000 is to pay off Sweet's henchmen, who are already embittered towards him because of his blatant mistreatment of them, in exchange for killing Sweet. Sweet angrily demands to know who will be the one to kill him just as Bobby shows up. Bobby and Sweet brawl, during which Bobby uses his hockey playing skills to get the upper hand, knocking Sweet unconscious. His former henchmen seal his fate, dropping him into a hole carved in the ice.

The three brothers, taken into police custody, are beaten in an attempt to make them confess to the murder of Victor Sweet, they give up nothing. Back home, they set about repairing their mother's house, and continuing their lives together.

Cast[]

Music[]

The music for the film includes, in a repeating refrain, the song "I Wish It Would Rain", written by Barrett Strong and Norman Whitfield, and performed by The Temptations, courtesy of Motown Records.

Other music includes the following:

Release[]

Four Brothers was released in the United States on August 12, 2005.

This film was released on VHS and DVD as separated widescreen and full-screen versions on December 20, 2005.

Reception[]

The movie grossed $92.5 million worldwide against a budget of $30 million.[2]

On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a 52% approval rating, based on 134 reviews with an average score of 5.7/10. The consensus is: "Despite striking a believable rapport among its principal actors, Four Brothers overwhelms with ultra-violent, vigilante-glorifying action and devolves into too many fractured, insubstantial thematic directions."[7]

Sequel[]

An article written in 2010 suggested that Paramount Pictures was developing a sequel for the film, with Mark Wahlberg returning to reprise his role. It would be written by David Elliot and Paul Lovett.[8]

In 2020, Tyrese Gibson in a post on his Instagram page, the singer and actor claims a script for the sequel, Five Brothers, is in the works.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d "Four Brothers (2005)". AFI Catalog of Feature Films. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  2. ^ a b c "Four Brothers (2005) - Financial Information". Retrieved 17 October 2017.
  3. ^ Mark Deming. "Four Brothers (2005) - John Singleton". AllMovie.
  4. ^ Adam Graham (11 January 2017). "Mark Wahlberg talks Detroit, Gilbert and 'Patriots Day'". The Detroit News. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  5. ^ Christopher Borrelli (12 August 2005). "Movie review: Four Brothers ***". The Blade. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  6. ^ Michael Hastings (17 August 2005). "Four Brothers". Metro Times. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  7. ^ "Four Brothers (2005)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  8. ^ Borys Kit , AP (13 January 2010). "Paramount eyeing 'Four Brothers' sequel". The Hollywood Reporter.

External links[]

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