Brotherly relationships have been a central theme throughout history and in pop culture, often providing a source of conflict, humor, and deep emotional connection.
From the ancient stories of Cain and Abel, Romulus and Remus, to more modern examples like The Godfather Part II, Step Brothers, and F9, sibling bonds are frequently mined for both comedy and tragedy.
Max Barbakow, who gained popularity with his 2020 film Palm Springs, brings this dynamic to his second feature, Brothers. While Palm Springs garnered critical acclaim for its innovative approach to comedy, Brothers follows a more traditional path.
The film presents a crime comedy that doesn’t quite match the brilliance of its predecessor but remains an enjoyable watch, largely thanks to its talented cast.
What is Brothers About?
Brothers centers on the complicated relationship between two brothers, Moke (Josh Brolin) and Jady Munger (Peter Dinklage). The brothers were raised by their criminal mother, Cath (Glenn Close), who disappeared after a botched job left them to fend for themselves.
Growing up, the brothers turned to a life of crime, pulling off heists and cons. However, their paths diverged when Jady got caught and sent to prison, while Moke managed to escape.
Five years later, Moke is a reformed man, married, and expecting a baby. Jady, on the other hand, is released from prison, thanks to the help of the corrupt Officer Farful (Brendan Fraser). Farful wants the brothers to help him find a set of long-lost jewels.
Now estranged, Moke and Jady must work together one last time for a final job, all while dealing with a corrupt officer, an untrustworthy mother, and the risk of Moke losing his stable life. The film follows their journey as they try to reconcile their differences and survive the dangerous situation they find themselves in.
Strong Performances But Safe Storytelling
The central focus of Brothers is the relationship between the two brothers, and in this, Josh Brolin and Peter Dinklage shine. The duo shares excellent chemistry and comedic timing, making their interactions feel authentic. Brolin plays Moke, the more serious brother who has worked hard to leave his criminal past behind.
He is trying to build a stable life with his wife, Abby (Taylour Paige), and their soon-to-be-born child. Dinklage, as Jady, brings a lighter, more chaotic energy to the film. His character is unpredictable, bringing constant drama and conflict, which contrasts well with Brolin’s more grounded portrayal.
Brolin’s portrayal of Moke as the “straight man” works well, and he delivers a strong performance. However, Dinklage’s character, with his sharp wit and energetic presence, gets the majority of the film’s best lines. Their easy back-and-forth chemistry makes their relationship entertaining, even when the plot itself feels somewhat predictable.
Brendan Fraser, playing Officer Farful, also delivers a strong performance. His character is a corrupt cop with an inflated sense of importance, and Fraser’s comedic timing suits the role perfectly.
However, Farful is not fully utilized as an antagonist. While he brings some physical menace to the table, his character could have been more active in the plot. Instead, he often feels more like a henchman than a major threat to the brothers.
Taylour Paige, playing Moke’s wife Abby, is a standout, even though her screen time is limited. Despite being somewhat underused, Paige brings charisma to the role, making Abby a memorable character.
Her presence adds an extra layer of emotional depth to Moke’s character, though the script doesn’t give her enough to do in the story. With more screen time, Abby could have added an important perspective to the film’s narrative, heightening the tension between Moke’s criminal past and his desire for a better life.
A Familiar Crime Caper with Missed Opportunities
The film’s plot follows the well-worn path of many crime capers, especially those in the vein of Logan Lucky or Guy Ritchie films. The brothers’ journey to pull off one final job, with a corrupt officer involved, is a familiar setup. While the film has plenty of charm, particularly in its dialogue and comedic moments, it doesn’t take many risks.
The humor can be hit-or-miss, with some bits, such as a subplot involving Moke becoming friends with an orangutan, feeling out of place in a film that otherwise maintains a more grounded tone.
There are also several narrative threads that don’t quite land. For example, the plot involving Marisa Tomei’s character, Bethesda, feels like a needless detour. While it introduces some interesting dynamics, it ultimately doesn’t add much to the full story.
Similarly, some key characters, like Officer Farful and Abby, are not as developed as they could be, leaving their potential untapped. The lack of deeper scheme of these characters weakens the full tension and emotional stakes.
The film’s pacing also struggles at times, with certain scenes dragging on or feeling unnecessary. For example, while the clock ticking down on Moke’s need to return home creates some suspense, the film could have benefited from a tighter narrative.
The inclusion of more scenes with Abby, and perhaps less focus on peripheral characters, could have sharpened the film’s focus. These minor issues accumulate, making Brothers feel more like a missed opportunity rather than the standout follow-up to Palm Springs that it could have been.
An Enjoyable Watch, but Not Revolutionary
While Brothers is an enjoyable film, it doesn’t quite live up to the expectations set by Barbakow’s previous work. The performances from Brolin and Dinklage are solid, and the film has some genuinely funny moments, but the script and direction fall into familiar crime comedy tropes without offering much new. The film is not without its charms, but it often feels safe and predictable.
Still from Brothers (Credit: Prime Video)
The lack of innovation is its biggest flaw. With such a talented cast, Brothers had the potential to break new ground in the crime comedy genre. Unfortunately, it doesn’t take full advantage of its premise or characters. While it’s still a fun movie to watch, it’s unlikely to leave a lasting impression.
Brothers is available to stream on Prime Video in the U.S. While it may not be a groundbreaking film, it provides an enjoyable experience for fans of crime comedies and is worth watching for the performances alone. However, those looking for something fresh or innovative may find themselves wishing for more.
In the end, Brothers feels like a film that had the potential to be much more but ended up playing it too safe. With the right adjustments, it could have been a more memorable experience, but for now, it remains a solid, if forgettable, entry in the crime comedy genre.
M. Night Shyamalan is a name synonymous with mind-bending plot twists, and his involvement as a producer in Caddo Lake shows that he continues to influence the world of thrillers with his signature style.
This Max original film, written and directed by Celine Held and Logan George, starts as a tense family drama before evolving into an intricate time-travel thriller that keeps viewers on the edge of their seats.
The movie presents a compelling narrative that spans multiple timelines and weaves together the stories of two main characters—Paris (played by Dylan O’Brien) and Ellie (played by Eliza Scanlen)—whose lives are linked in ways they don’t fully understand until the truth comes to light.
At its core, Caddo Lake is about grief, loss, and the unexpected ways in which people are connected across time. What begins as a straightforward story about a young man grappling with the death of his mother soon transforms into a multi-layered tale that examines how the past and present can collide.
The film shows the complicated dynamics between the characters, especially Paris and Ellie, as they each struggle with their own personal tragedies. While Paris is trying to find closure regarding his mother’s death, Ellie is on a quest to find her missing stepsister, Anna (played by Caroline Falk).
Through a series of twists and turns, both characters find themselves caught in a mysterious time portal located in Caddo Lake, which leads them on a journey to discover how their stories are intertwined.
A Family Drama Turns into a Time Travel Thriller
The film sets the stage by introducing Paris and Ellie as two characters with separate, seemingly unrelated problems. In 2003, Paris is still mourning his mother’s death, which occurred several years earlier. His mother’s death was not just a typical tragedy—she died in a car accident when she drove off a bridge with Paris in the vehicle.
Paris doesn’t believe that it was a simple seizure that caused the crash; he has suspicions about the circumstances surrounding her death, and his investigation into this mystery forms the central conflict of his storyline.
In the film’s present-day timeline of 2022, Ellie is struggling with the disappearance of her stepsister, Anna. Anna went missing under strange circumstances, and her mother, Celeste (played by Lauren Ambrose), holds Ellie responsible for the disappearance, as Anna had been trying to follow Ellie when she disappeared.
Unbeknownst to Ellie, Anna had crossed paths with a mysterious portion of Caddo Lake—a lake that has the power to serve as a portal through time. This portal, however, doesn’t allow anyone to control when they go or where they end up.
While Paris is busy investigating the events leading to his mother’s death, Ellie is searching for answers about Anna’s disappearance. In both cases, their stories appear to be independent, yet they are linked by the time portal in Caddo Lake—a supernatural element that will change the course of their lives.
As Paris and Ellie try to understand the mysteries that surround them, their paths unknowingly start to converge in ways that they can’t yet comprehend.
Paris and Ellie’s Time Travel Journey
One of the most intriguing aspects of Caddo Lake is its use of time travel as a narrative device. The film splits its focus between two timelines: Paris’s story in 2003 and Ellie’s story in 2022.
In Paris’s timeline, the focus is primarily on his grief and his quest for answers regarding his mother’s death. Paris becomes obsessed with the idea that his mother’s death was not an accident, and his search for the truth leads him to a strange area of Caddo Lake.
While Paris is uncovering the past, Ellie’s story in 2022 revolves around Anna’s disappearance. In her search, Ellie discovers that Anna’s fate may not be what it seems. The key to both their stories lies within the time portal located at Caddo Lake.
The portal is hidden beneath the surface of the lake, and it only activates when the lake is drained or flooded. This portal allows time travelers to move between different points in time, but it’s a chaotic and unpredictable journey. No one knows when or where they will end up.
The first significant twist occurs when Paris, driven by his quest for answers, steps through the time portal and lands in the year 1952. At this time, Caddo Lake has been drained due to the construction of a dam. The drained lake exposes the time portal near Goat Island, making it accessible for Paris.
After traveling through the portal, Paris finds himself in a time where the lake is no longer submerged, and it’s only when he encounters Anna—unconscious and injured—that he realizes he has gone back in time.
Paris is able to leave Anna with a group of cattle ranchers who take her to receive medical treatment. This marks a key moment in the film, as it’s at this point that Paris learns he has traveled back to 1952.
The dam construction has drained the lake, exposing the portal, but every time the area becomes flooded again, the portal disappears. This revelation sets the stage for a deeper scheme of time travel and its consequences.
Meanwhile, Ellie is also affected by the time portal. She begins traveling through it, trying to find answers about Anna. Her first journey takes her only 24 hours back in time, back to when Anna went missing. But things take a strange turn when Ellie continues to use the portal, traveling into different time periods.
She first goes back a month to a night when she had a big argument with her mother. From there, Ellie travels to 2005, where she finds Anna’s life jacket—a piece of evidence that seems to tie Anna to the past.
During her time in 2005, Ellie discovers an old photograph of Anna and Paris, which leads her to further investigate their connection. Ellie finds herself in a strange position when she notices a cancer necklace hanging from the rearview mirror of a car belonging to Cee (Diana Hopper), Paris’s ex-girlfriend.
When Ellie breaks into the car, she uncovers a shocking truth: the necklace originally belonged to Anna, and Cee explains that it had once belonged to Paris’s mother.
At this point, Ellie begins to piece together the puzzle. Anna, it turns out, had traveled back in time and stayed there. In the past, she had eventually given birth to Ellie’s father, Paris. This realization shocks Ellie, who now understands that Anna is actually her grandmother.
The Truth About Anna and Paris
The film’s final twist comes when Ellie returns to 2022 and discovers that Anna has already passed away by 2005. Ellie learns that Anna’s disappearance, which was tragic at the time, had actually played a key role in ensuring Ellie’s own existence. This revelation is bittersweet, as it reveals the impact of time travel on the characters’ lives.
Ellie then realizes that she must return to the present to prevent the collapse of the time portal. As she makes her way back to 2022, Paris also finds his way back to the present—unwillingly. After intending to return to 2003, Paris ends up in 2022 during the search for Anna. He is arrested after being found on Anna’s boat, but he escapes from the authorities. As he makes his way to the dam, Paris faces one last confrontation with time.
With the dam on the brink of collapse, Paris jumps into Caddo Lake, hoping to make it back to the portal before it floods again. Tragically, he doesn’t make it in time, and the dam breaks, causing the water to drown the area. Paris dies when he is pulled underwater, striking his head on a rock. His death, while tragic, brings closure to his arc.
In the final moments of the film, Ellie and Celeste see Paris’s death reported on the news. They now know the truth: Paris never intended to leave them, and Anna’s disappearance was part of a larger, inevitable series of events. The loss of Paris and Anna is tragic, but it opens up an opportunity for Ellie and Celeste to rebuild their relationship, as they now have the full truth about their intertwined destinies.
Still from Caddo Lake (Credit: Max)
In Caddo Lake, the intertwining of time travel, family secrets, and tragedy creates a gripping narrative that shows the deep connections between past and present. Through Paris and Ellie’s journeys across timelines, the film reveals how loss, fate, and unexpected twists shape their destinies.
While the death of Paris and the truth about Anna’s disappearance bring sadness, they also offer a sense of closure and the potential for healing. Ultimately, the film leaves viewers with a thought-provoking message about how time can change lives and how understanding the past can help mend fractured relationships in the present.
The time-travel thriller Caddo Lake combines complex family drama and supernatural elements in a tragic yet hopeful tale of fate, loss, and family secrets. Its intricate twists and turns offer an attractive experience, leaving viewers pondering the impact of time travel on the lives of its characters.
