Brother (1997 film)
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| Brother | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Aleksei Balabanov |
| Produced by | Sergei Selyanov |
| Written by | Aleksei Balabanov |
| Starring | Sergei Bodrov Jr. Viktor Sukhorukov Vyacheslav Butusov |
| Distributed by | Kino International Corp. |
| Release date(s) | 1997 |
| Running time | 99 Min. |
| Language | Russian |
| Budget | >$1,000,000 |
| IMDb profile | |
Brother (Russian: Брат, Brat) is a 1997 crime film directed by Aleksei Balabanov and starring Sergei Bodrov Jr.. The film quickly became a popular hit in Russia and announced a new generation of Russian filmmaking had arrived. It's a simple yet compelling tale. It resonates with the same energy as the French new wave films.
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[edit] Plot
Danila (Bodrov) is a former soldier who arrives in St. Petersburg to find a job. He goes to seek out his older brother Viktor. Viktor is an accomplished mobster and offers Danila a job, cheating him from the start when he explains the conditions.
Throughout the movie Danila befriends several people from a very wide spectrum; Kat, an energetic druggie and Nemets ( 'German', literally) who is a kindly homeless old man.
Viktor gives Danila a job (an assassination) to do, but when it goes wrong, Danila is forced to escape. He is shot and must hide in a tram to escape his pursuers. The driver of the tram, Sveta, notices him and decides to help him. Danila continues seeing her and they eventually fall in love even though Sveta is married.
Pretty soon a local mob boss nicknamed Krugliy (literally: "Roundhead") starts asking questions about Danila who killed three of his men and injured one. His search leads to Viktor who betrays his brother in order to stay alive. Krugliy decides to hold Viktor as a hostage and wait for Danila to arrive in his apartment. However Danila, who is armed and ready, intercepts a shooter outside the apartment and becomes aware of what is going on outside. With his sawn off shot gun he makes his way upstairs and with exceptional skill, kills the enemy and rescues his brother. When his brother admits to Danila that he betrayed him, Danila forgives him and tells him to leave St. Petersburg to go home to the village. Thus Danila switches roles with Viktor.
Seeing that it is too dangerous for him in St. Petersburg, Danila decides to leave St. Petersburg for Moscow and says his final farewells to his friends.
[edit] Danila's Motives
Danila is basically a killing machine. He shows no remorse in his deeds. He appears cold and deadly however he is just like any young guy. He listens to rock music and goes to clubs. Towards the end of the movie Danila begins to realize that killing really isn't for him. He has no motives except for gain.
Danila is characterized as uneducated village person who is overwhelmed by Saint Petersburg but soon finds himself in the situation to apply what he learned in the military (although he maintains that he never saw action, and performed office duties during the Chechen war). Throughout the film he visits a music shop and get advised on what cassettes to buy. He listens to many songs by Nautilius Pompilius.
