"Brother's Justice" American Theatrical Poster
Director: David Palmer, Dax Shepard
Writer: Dax Shepard
Producer: Nate Tuck
Cast: Dax Shepard, Nate Tuck, Tom Arnold, Bradley Cooper, Jon Favreau, Ashton Kutcher, James Feldman, David Koechner, David Palmer, Michael Rosenbaum, Jess Rowland, Rome Shadanloo, Josh Temple
Running Time: 85 min.
By Laser Beahm
Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t get the Mockumentary genre. Am I supposed to take it seriously, is it supposed to be funny, if I watched an entire movie that was supposed to be real, but it wasn’t, didn’t I just waste 2 hours of my life?
Brothers Justice is a Mockumentary film about an actor who is trying to leave his comfort zone as a comedy actor, to try to take on a new role as a martial arts expert. As he attempts to sell his new idea to movie execs, he is brutally rebuffed by practically everyone in the industry. Not willing to take “no,” for an answer, Dax and his sidekick, (virtual unknown, James Feldman), decide to shoot a trailer of the movie in order to be taken seriously. Or at least, I think that is what the movie is about. To be brutally honest, the movie gets a little convoluted. Perhaps that is just my misunderstanding of the entire genre as a whole.
Don’t get me wrong, I like Dax Shepherd, but Brothers Justice is hardly what I would call “oscar gold,” in fact, I wouldn’t even call it a “popcorn comedy”. Sure Bradley Cooper makes an appearance, and he’s always fun to look at. But, the comedy is weak, the idea is definitely missing a motive, and there are so many dull moments it probably should have been cut down by another hour. I get especially confused when Dax is explaining his movie idea to anyone who will listen, including actor/producer Jon Favreu. But, perhaps that is what Dax was going for. If it was, I apparently wasn’t in on the joke.
There are times in this movie when I feel like I am watching a group of college kids make their first movie. Sure they are the cool guys in school, and everyone wants to be a part of something cool, but was it really worth anyone’s time or money to put this thing together? The answer, sadly, is no.
There are some redeeming factors. The scene where Bradley Cooper and David Koechner’s characters are introduced is hilarious. Tom Arnold is always entertaining to watch. Dax’s sidekick has the dry humor of a saltine and the intelligence of a special olympics participant, which actually comes off as endearing. He brought me back to scenes of Cameron in Ferris Buellers Day Off. And, I actually did find myself laughing during the final scenes of the movie.
All-in-all, my opinion of Dax Shepherd hasn’t changed. I still like it when he shows up in movies, and I love him in his new role as a serious guy in Parenthood. But, Brother’s Justice was probably better left as a joke between friends. On a scale of 1 to 10, I give it a 4. It gets extra points for the cast. If I were a college professor grading this film, I would probably give a C, but that’s mostly because Dax and his friends are so likeable. Let’s just consider this another genre for Dax attempted and… done.
Laser Beahm’s Rating: 4/10
Sometimes you just need a movie to watch where you don’t have to think about anything. I liked this movie for that very reason.