The Sisters Brothers is a 2018 Western film directed by Jacques Audiard from a screenplay he co-wrote with Thomas Bidegain, based on the novel of the same name by Patrick deWitt. An American and French co-production, it is Audiard's first English-language work. The film stars John C. Reilly (who also produced) and Joaquin Phoenix as the notorious assassin brothers Eli and Charlie Sisters, and follows the two brothers as they chase after two men (Jake Gyllenhaal and Riz Ahmed) who have banded together to search for gold.
The film had its world premiere at the Venice International Film Festival on 2 September 2018, where it won the Silver Lion for Best Direction, and was theatrically released in the United States on 21 September 2018. The Sisters Brothers received positive reviews from critics, with most praise going to its performances, characters, direction and soundtrack. It was a box office bomb, grossing $14.1 million against its $38 million production budget. It was the final feature film featuring Rutger Hauer released before his death, although he had finished filming several projects released after his death.
Contents
Plot
In the American West in 1851, gunfighters Eli and Charlie Sisters are hired by the wealthy "Commodore" to kill a man named Hermann Warm.
John Morris, a private detective, has been hired by the Commodore to track Warm down, and hand him over to the Sisters brothers. Morris finds Warm traveling by wagon train to California with the Gold Rush and befriends him. They travel to Jacksonville where Morris has arranged his rendezvous with the Sisters brothers. Warm finds Morris' handcuffs, realizes his true intentions, and threatens him at gunpoint but Morris overpowers him. Warm reveals that he plans to find gold using a chemical formula of his own invention; the Sisters brothers have been sent to retrieve the formula, most likely by torturing Warm before killing him. Refusing to allow an innocent man's murder, Morris frees Warm and the two leave Jacksonville. On the road toward San Francisco, Warm reveals that his ultimate plan is to create a utopian society in Dallas, Texas.
The brothers' pursuit is plagued by misfortune. A grizzly bear attacks their camp and mauls Eli's horse, Eli becomes very ill from swallowing a spider in his sleep and Charlie is repeatedly drunk and too hung over to ride. When they discover Morris' betrayal in Jacksonville, they follow the pair to the town of Mayfield. At Ms. Mayfield's hotel and brothel, she denies having seen Warm and Morris but offers the brothers a warm welcome. A sympathetic prostitute warns Eli of an impending attack and he attempts to leave with a drunken Charlie but they are cornered by Mayfield's gunslingers. The brothers kill the gunslingers and interrogate Mayfield as to Warm's and Morris’ whereabouts, before murdering and robbing her.
In San Francisco, Charlie and Eli argue about continuing their hunt. Eli wishes to retire and open a store, but Charlie angrily rejects this idea. The next day, Charlie reveals that he has found a claim staked in Morris' name a few days' ride away. Eli agrees to complete the hunt as their final job.
On the way to the claim site, the brothers are ambushed and captured by Warm and Morris, who are then attacked by Mayfield's men sent before her death to claim the formula for herself. The four team up to kill Mayfield's men, after which Charlie and Eli agree to help Warm and Morris find gold in exchange for half the takings. Morris is revealed to be a wealthy young man from Washington DC, who came west in rebellion against his father, now dead, and to whom Warm's Dallas phalanstère project has at last given a purpose in life. Working to dam the river, the new partners develop a camaraderie. Eli reveals to Warm that Charlie killed their abusive, alcoholic father when they were young, and that Charlie's short temper and violent tendencies put him in danger, so Eli reluctantly took up their present employment to protect him.
Cast
John C. Reilly as Eli Sisters
Aldo Maland as young Eli
Joaquin Phoenix as Charlie Sisters
Theo Exarchopoulos as young Charlie
Jake Gyllenhaal as John Morris
Riz Ahmed as Hermann Kermit Warm
Rebecca Root as Mayfield
Allison Tolman as Saloon Prostitute
Rutger Hauer as The Commodore
Carol Kane as Mrs. Sisters, The Brothers' Mother
Ian Reddington as Mr. Sisters, The Brothers' Father
Richard Brake as Rex
Creed Bratton as Quarrel Saloon Patron #2
Production
In 2011, it was announced that the film rights to the novel The Sisters Brothers had been sold to John C. Reilly's production company, and Reilly was set to play one of the brothers. Four years later, French director Jacques Audiard announced on the radio station RTL that he would direct the film, his first English-language feature. On 25 April 2016, Deadline Hollywood reported that Joaquin Phoenix had joined the project. In February 2017, Variety reported that Jake Gyllenhaal had also been cast, later announcing that Riz Ahmed joined as well. In May, Variety stated that Annapurna Pictures would also produce and co-finance the film, alongside Why Not Productions, with Megan Ellison serving as an executive producer on the project.
The film started shooting in early June 2017 in the Spanish city Almería, and continued the shoot throughout the summer in Tabernas, Navarre and Aragon.
Release
The Sisters Brothers had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on 2 September 2018. It was also screened at the Toronto International Film Festival on 7 September, and was theatrically released on 21 September 2018. Annapurna paid between $7.5–9 million for the North American distribution rights.
Reception
Box office
As of May 9, 2019, The Sisters Brothers has grossed $3.1 million in the United States and Canada, and $11.5 million in other territories, for a total worldwide gross of $14.6 million, against a production budget of $38 million.
During its limited opening weekend, on 21 September, the film grossed $115,575 from four theaters, an average of $28,894 per venue. It expanded to 27 theaters in its second weekend, making $233,258, and to 54 theaters in its third, grossing $203,525. By its seventh weekend of release, the film had crossed $3 million domestically, after grossing $66,665 in 146 theaters that weekend. Its widest release was at 1,141 theaters.
Critical response
On review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 87%, based on 208 reviews, with an average rating of 7.3/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "The Sisters Brothers rides familiar genre trails in occasionally unexpected ways - a satisfying journey further elevated by its well-matched leading men." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 78 out of 100, based on reviews from 44 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian gave the film 4 out of 5 stars, calling it "resoundingly enjoyable and funny". William Bibbiani of IGN assigned it an 8.0 out of 10, saying, "John C. Reilly and Joaquin Phoenix shine as wild west hitmen who are just smart enough to know they should be smarter, [and] whose quest leads them in unexpected, funny, and surprisingly emotional directions." Owen Gleibermen of Variety wrote, "The Sisters Brothers is too light to be a true drama and too heavy to be a comedy."
The film earned a warm response, including a standing ovation, at the 75th Venice International Film Festival. Jacques Audiard won the Silver Lion for Best Director at the festival.