The Sisters Brothers (2018)
78%RT Audience Score: 68%
Awards & Nominations: NA
The Sisters Brothers rides familiar genre trails in occasionally unexpected ways – a satisfying journey further elevated by its well-matched leading men
The Sisters Brothers is a film that travels down familiar genre paths, but manages to deliver surprises along the way. The journey is made all the more satisfying by the strong performances of the leading men, who are well-matched in their roles. As a viewer, I appreciated the way the film played with conventions while still staying true to the genre, delivering a fresh take on a well-worn formula. Overall, The Sisters Brothers is an enjoyable and well-crafted movie that offers a rewarding experience for fans of the genre.
Production Company(ies)
20th Century Studios, Annapurna Pictures, Michael De Luca Productions, Sister
Distributor
Annapurna Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
Spain; Romania
MPAA / Certificate
Year of Release
2018
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:2h 0m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Oct 19, 2018 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 22, 2019
Genre(s)
Western/Comedy
Keyword(s)
Western, Comedy, Crime, Drama, Jacques Audiard, John C Reilly, Joaquin Phoenix, Jake Gyllenhaal, Riz Ahmed, Rebecca Root, Allison Tolman, Pascal Caucheteux, Grégoire Sorlat, Michel Merkt, Michael De Luca, Alison Dickey, John C Reilly, Jacques Audiard, Thomas Bidegain, R, English, Annapurna Pictures, Scope (2.35:1), $3.1M, reviewed by Ben Sachs, Charlotte O’Sullivan, Simran Hans, Tara Brady, Geoffrey Macnab, Mark Kermode, Keith Garlington, Brian Eggert, Graeme Tuckett, John C Reilly as Eli Sisters, Joaquin Phoenix as Charlie Sisters, Jake Gyllenhaal as John Morris, Riz Ahmed as Hermann Kermit Warm, Rebecca Root as Mayfield, Allison Tolman as Girl in Mayfield Saloon, directed by Jacques Audiard, written by Jacques Audiard and Thomas Bidegain, produced by Pascal Caucheteux, Grégoire Sorlat, Michel Merkt, Michael De Luca, Alison Dickey, John C Reilly, rated R for Language, Disturbing Images, Some Sexual Content, Violence, gold rush, assassins, Oregon, California, brothel, hitmen, chemist, pan for gold, anti-Western, camaraderie, individualist western types, unfettered capitalist system, quirky interactions, loopy storytelling, tragicomedy, subversiveness, beautiful cinematography, score, bursts of tragedy, patriarchal genres, trans actor, gay relationship, unfulfilled longing, unexpected ending
Worldwide gross: NA
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $16,498,491
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,778
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 1,799,181
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $16,498,491
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,464
US/Canada opening weekend: $115,575
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $145,558
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,800
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $38,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $47,858,220
Production budget ranking: 805
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $25,771,651
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$57,131,379
ROI to date (est.): -78%
ROI ranking: 1,859
Joaquin Phoenix – Charlie Sisters
Jake Gyllenhaal – John Morris
Riz Ahmed – Hermann Kermit Warm
Rebecca Root – Mayfield
Allison Tolman – Girl in Mayfield Saloon
Director – Jacques Audiard
Producers – Pascal Caucheteux, Grégoire Sorlat, Michel Merkt, Michael De Luca, Alison Dickey, John C. Reilly
Writers – Jacques Audiard, Thomas Bidegain
Director(s)
Jacques Audiard
Writer(s)
Jacques Audiard, Thomas Bidegain
Producer(s)
Pascal Caucheteux, Grégoire Sorlat, Michel Merkt, Michael De Luca, Alison Dickey, John C. Reilly
Film Festivals
Venice, Toronto
Awards & Nominations
NA
Academy Awards
All Critics (211) | Top Critics (55) | Fresh (183) | Rotten (28)
Neither a nostalgic throwback to traditional westerns nor a revisionist antiwestern, this advances a positive view of camaraderie between individualist western types while subtly critiquing the unfettered capitalist system in which they operate.
March 4, 2020
Ben Sachs
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
Erudite, visceral and chuckle-worthy, this western is based on Patrick deWitt’s novel and starts out as the story of two gun-toting, chalk-and-cheese brothers, only to become more mysterious.
April 7, 2019 | Rating: 4/5
Charlotte O’Sullivan
London Evening Standard
TOP CRITIC
Images of the Oregon trail’s deserted beauty invoke the genre’s cinematic history, but these aren’t John Ford’s stoic, taciturn cowboys.
April 7, 2019 | Rating: 3/5
Simran Hans
Observer (UK)
TOP CRITIC
The Sisters Brothers hovers unconvincingly between tones.
April 5, 2019 | Rating: 3/5
Tara Brady
Irish Times
TOP CRITIC
It’s a measure of the four exceptional central performances (from Reilly, Phoenix, Gyllenhaal and Ahmed) that the film remains so engaging in spite of its narrative digressions and moments of very bleak violence.
April 5, 2019 | Rating: 4/5
Geoffrey Macnab
Independent (UK)
TOP CRITIC
The level of production is above what kind of film it is.
April 5, 2019
Mark Kermode
Kermode & Mayo’s Film Review
TOP CRITIC
Despite its shaky tone, some of the humor lands really well. And it’s a lot of fun watching such an eclectic cast bite into this fascinating assortment of characters.
August 25, 2022 | Rating: 3.5/5
Keith Garlington
Keith & the Movies
With memorable performances throughout this extraordinary cast, The Sisters Brothers is another Audiard film whose tonality withstands categorization. It’s neither a straightforward Western nor merely revisionist.
March 11, 2022 | Rating: 4/4
Brian Eggert
Deep Focus Review
A loose, funny, thoughtful and near-surreal western.
January 28, 2022
Graeme Tuckett
Stuff.co.nz
Episode 15: The West Was Red
September 1, 2021 | Rating: 76/100
Taylor Baker
Drink in the Movies
Plays like a movie that yearns to say something without knowing what it would like to say
April 5, 2021 | Rating: 2.5/5
Michael J. Casey
Michael J. Cinema
It’s a buddy flick and a Western but it’s also more than the sum of its parts.
March 1, 2021 | Rating: 3.5/5
Richard Crouse
Richard Crouse…
Plot
Based on the novel by Patrick deWitt about two brothers hired to murder a prospector during the California Gold Rush. They travel from Oregon City to San Francisco, only to find out that the man they’ve been sent to kill may have something better to offer.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
After Charlie Sisters visits the claims office in San Francisco, he tells Eli that the men they are looking for are at Folsom Lake on the American River. Folsom Lake didn’t exist until Folsom Dam was built on the South Fork of the American River in 1955.
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