Ralfscheapthrill Review of Half Brothers

Half Brothers (2015)

Still laughing! Enjoyable counterpart to "The Elementary Particles"

[10/10 · 17 April 2015]

Three half brothers - guess what they make: a) one and a half brothers or b) a really enjoyable German comedy? Believe it or not: b) is the right answer. This film might not be perfect but it's made with compassion, wit and joy - and all that finds it's way to the audience. The three main characters are well casted, they all hold the balance between self-irony and "serious" acting. They meet each other for the first time and go on a German autobahn-trip to find the mysterious heritage their late mother left for them. It turns out, the mother was a real radical hippie, never present for their children, but a disciple of free love. And in contrary to e.g. Oskar Roehler's "Elementary Particles" she will not be remembered with shame or disgust. As a memory she'll become a beloved part of the unlikely unification of a family that was never supposed to be one (most of the time). What a family can mean to you (as a present father) is told almost by the way when you see Sido's character struggling with serious money problems, haunted by the collection agencies in the shape of a ugly pink bunny (!) Seriously, this is digging the truth far more than you usually see in German cinema and TV-movies, which tend to a "social realism" that is nothing more but swaggering kitsch of misery. But above these tender and serious grounds there is a lot of comedy going on in the first place. Well written one-liners seem to go hand in hand with moments of vibrant improvisation. And - of course, it's a Christian Alvart-Film, it's fun to watch all the references to film history. Since I saw it I always have a smile on my face when I think about "Halbe Brüder", and when I think about the joke with the record-deal, I still burst out in laughter. Actually, I would give it an 8. But since neither the audience nor the critics in Germany seem to get it - it has to be 10 as a statement...