At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

I haven't seen a crime movie with action more realistic than is, and can guarantee you that neither have you.This movie emphasizes that when you get shot you can't run as fast as a cheetah unlike the Hollywood films portray every day. The movie is multi-layered (you can watch in as an action movie), a social analysis of the period, even a Dostoevsky-like study on the value of brotherhood and after all, a unique picture of what Russia is, was, and will be.The story is told brilliantly the main character Danila, doesn't tell or brag about his past, he actually makes himself out to be a humble guy, instead of saying he served in the hot spot in the war and was given recognition and bravery award for saving his platoon members, he often reminds people that he was far from combat, he is passionate and caring and not aggressive at all.If you were in S. Petersburgh in the early nineties, you feel this movie has been able to grab a cubic meter of air of the city at that time, pack it, and give it to its viewers to breathe.filled with excellent performances, especially by Sergei Bodrov III and Yuri Kutznetsov. I was swept away by the story and characters, thrown into their world. I'd have to say it's a MUST SEE!!!

At first glance Brat, (Brother), comes across as a grim and humorless portrayal of post-Cold War Russia, but beneath the surface it is a strong critique of the dangerous wounded animal that the country has become: mass poverty, crime, alienation of the youth and failing family structure all act as dramatic catalysts in the system, adding to the problems and attitudes of 1990s Russia. Our vantage point revolves around the young Danila and follows through with his reintroduction to life outside the military, into the city. Although Danila is surrounded by the gloom and doom of the Communist aftermath where social structures are collapsing into near anarchy, he remains an allegorical symbol of the state of Russia's acute sense of right and wrong and offers hope for a brighter future and some semblance of a moral code.In St. Petersburg Viktor is successful, but we find that it is at being a hit-man for the Russian mafia, which is also making him paranoid. After tying up Dani in a scheme to take out a competitive Chechen mob boss in his stead while simultaneously usurping the Russians, Dani is now in over his head with the mob, and becomes a killer. Meanwhile each character Danila meets represents a different aspect of Russian culture and institutional disillusionment. He begins with Kat, a disaffected youth who only cares for him only for the money he has to buy acid and go raving. Later in the film, Dani goes out with Kat to do just that, and finds himself at a house party telling fellow inebriated foreigners, "Soon all of your America will kick the bucket!" When Kat tells him to stop badgering them because they're French, he replies with "It's all the same." Clearly, there is no thawing of Western resentment, even in the youth, daily indoctrinated by their seniors. It is only when Russians seek to find their own identity, not to emulate the capitalist West as Yeltsin's failed attempt of economic shock therapy sought to do, that there is a renewed sense of nationalistic pride. We see this again when two American tourists ask Danila for directions to a nearby club and he is disapprovingly silent. Danila's moral compass takes on some unorthodox manifestations as is not unlike the general occurrences of the city. On a public bus, a ticket-taker asks two men to either supply a ticket or provide the fee. As they disrespectfully hassle the official to leave them alone, Dani makes them pay at gunpoint. Here the impoverished Dani has the chance to take all of the contents of the man's wallet, which contains much more than the $7 fee, but he takes only the fee amount and tells them to beat it. Shortly after, a thug is hassling a street trinket-seller for "taxes" and threatens to take his goods. Danila swiftly knocks the thug out and makes friends with the man named Nemets, a homeless German. When his nationality comes up later, Danila says he has no problems with Germans, only Americans and Jews (Westerners). Nemets remains Danila's kindest friend throughout, and moral anchor, constantly supplying the wisdom of the film. Ironically, the most foolish character is the Russian Mob boss, who speaks in rhyming proverbs, but is driven by greed and power. Another disillusionment comes in the form of a brief love interest named Sveta, whose husband is an abusive drunk. This failing family mirrors the situation all over the city, as Nemets so sagely says, "The city is an evil force. The strong come and become feeble. The city takes the strength away. And now you've fallen." Even Dani's bitter old landlord speaks to everyone threateningly as though it is still WWII unless he is intoxicated. Nemets' words weigh heavily on Danila. In the climax moment when his brother (unbeknownst to Dani) has him cover his position in a heist suspected to be a trap, some innocent people get mixed up in the hit, one of them being the frontman of his favorite band. Danila makes a promise to save an innocent and turns on the two mob thugs when they finish their hit and start killing the witnesses.Danila has come to a realisation that his life is becoming the very substance he is fighting against, but that is not the end of his criminal lifestyle. The mob learns of this and take his brother in for beating and questioning. Then they discover Danila's address and rape and beat Sveta while he is away. Dani gets prepared to liberate the community of the mob and rescue his brother simultaneously. As he is made known to the front guard, in an act of mercy he gives him his word to spare his life if he remains quiet, which he follows up with after killing the rest of the gangsters. As Danila makes amends with the ultimate betrayal (his brother's) he takes the mob money and seeks to say goodbye to each of his acquaintances, to which he offers the only reparation he knows--money. Sveta has lost interest and seeks to reunite with her estranged husband, Kat passively accepts Dani's farewell and cash and Nemet follows up with his words of wisdom once more, "what's good for the Russian is death for the German," a message contrary to his earlier mantra.Brother was Russia's big contemporary crime thriller. But besides being a low-budget blockbuster, it carries an important story of the resurfacing of morals in a fallen world, serving as a message for its Russian audience. The film ends with Danila hitching a ride to Moscow in a red (Russian) truck amidst the white backdrop of a road and forest blanketed with snow, symbolising the new beginning for Russia.

This movie a well as like almost any movie of this editor brings only negative messages to people. Nothing good in such kind of art, when you are watching just stupid film you didn't loose anything except your time and maybe small part or your taste(for most idiotic examples), but this one just cant keep any good person calm cause its full of evil and pure pointless inhumanity. Its an anthem for worst part of 90s in Russia, but without any positive message, just like propaganda of moral degradation and violence as the way of life.So i just cant recommend it for anyone except for professional critics and psychology fans.

I really can't understand why would anybody compare this movie with Tarantino's drivel. This is a realistic and bleak portrayal of post-communist Russia, before Putin's ascend to power. Desperate times usually bring the worst in people, and Russia in early 90's is no exception. The rigid communist structure collapsed and nothing replaced it for some time. The vacuum was filled with gangsters and thugs of all kinds. This is the time when young Danilo ( excellent late Sergei Bodrov) comes to St. Petersburg to find his fortune. He has a twisted code of morality, and at least in the beginning, he preys only on the bad guys.The bleakness of average people's lives in those harsh times is heartbreaking, and this movie is brilliant in that regard. This is not fake show-off like "Pulp Fiction", this is a slice of real life horrors.