Half Brothers is a comedy film directed by Luke Greenfield. The plot sees two half-brothers Renato (Luis Gerado Mendez) and Asher (Connor Del Rio),come into contact for the first time after the death of their father (Juan Pablo Espinosa).
This film brought a tear to my eye and broke my heart, as a comedy film I don’t know if it was aiming to do this or if this was a mistake, but there is some powerful emotions in this film. The father journey is beautifully told over the course of the film, starting with him leaving Mexico to go to the States and then never being able to come back and the impact that has on Renato. How he never gave up trying to come back and has thought about seeing his first son again all his life, it is touching and deeply sad.
I enjoyed seeing the two-brother bond over the course of the film, yes the storyline was nothing new, but the leads had enough chemistry that they pulled it off and made it enjoyable. Both characters were more than they first appeared and had nuanced moments and arcs of their own, usually the writing in comedy films is quite weak but I have to hand it to this film it really managed to buck that trend.
My one issue with this film would be that though it is well written and has strong emotional resonances, it is not funny and at the end of the day it is supposed to be a comedy film. Now as I often say comedy is subjective, but for I didn’t really find myself laughing at all, smiling a few times but no laughs.
Overall, as a comedy film it is a let-down, but as a drama and a character piece this is incredibly strong. If you change what you are looking for and your initial expectations there is a rough diamond here.
Pros.
It is touching
The emotional arc
Salient points about society
The performances
Cons.
It is not funny
4/5
Reviewed by Luke
Another Millennial Reviewer 