The Sisters Brothers (dir. by Jacques Audiard, 2018)

Departing from the usual tone and atmosphere of the typical western, The Sisters Brothers often makes you feel rather than think, crafting a surprisingly moving emotional story for two quarrelsome brothers as they shoot, drink and murder their way across the frontier. The film features some of the finest male acting talent available today. Current Best Actor Oscar holder Joaquin Phoenix stars alongside John C. Reilly as brothers Charlie and Eli Sisters respectively, with Jake Gyllenhaal and Riz Ahmed in key supporting roles.

The story follows the brothers, a pair of feared assassins employed by a mysterious wealthy businessman called the Commodore, as they pursue a private detective (Gyllenhaal) and an idealistic chemist (Ahmed) who have teamed up in the search for gold. This journey tests the brothers’ relationship, and leaves both wondering if their blood bond is for the best or not.

In the beginning, the film really plays upon the comedic talents of its actors, particularly Reilly, who is primarily known for his funnier roles in films such as Step Brothers and Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. He manages to make something as simple as cleaning one’s teeth a funny thing to watch. There are subtle gags and chuckle-worthy lines sprinkled throughout the screenplay, but the film slowly starts to turn towards a more contemplative and sombre ending once they catch up with those they are following.

Phoenix plays the domineering and unhinged Charlie with some bite; you’re never quite sure what the charismatic and crazy drunk is going to do next. Reilly’s turn as the more sensible and sensitive Eli is the true heart of the film. He receives all the sympathy despite his grizzly profession. The relationship of the brothers feels thought out and real and it’s quite the enjoyable ride to be by their side for most of the picture.

Compared to the rough and ready Sisters, Gyllenhaal and Ahmed are the far more sophisticated and hopeful pair. Their talks about utopian societies are a clear contrast to the Sisters constant bickering, and its interesting to these two sets of men clash in the film’s third act.

In terms of how The Sisters Brothers looks, it’s a pleasant film to behold. As the running time ticks on, dusty deserts are traded for the lush forests and sandy coastlines of the Californian coast. The change in landscape certainly mirrors the film’s shift in tone from a humorous western parody to a more contemplative musing on family and brotherhood. The film’s jaunty soundtrack also shifts, and lacks the jolly honky-tonk feel it charms you with in the film’s first half.

The film’s ending will please some and frustrate others. Maybe it should have double downed on a more violent and absolute climax, but what we received works with its gentler touch. Commenting on western archetypes summoned into existence by films like John Ford’s 1956 classic The Searchers, The Sisters Brothers does a terrific job of subtly lampooning the mythologised genre, and gives hope for the western genre to grow in our frontierless modern world.