By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.2 cats
Director: Keith Fulton | Louis Pepe
Starring: Harry Treadaway | Jane Horrocks | Luke Treadaway | Tom Bower
Country: united_kingdom
Year: 2006
Running time: 120
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0432260/
Michael says: “The directors of LOST IN LA MANCHA, Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe have constructed a false documentary set in the mid-70’s about two conjoined twins who are transformed by an entertainment promoter into a proto-punk musical act. The documentary device is a successful method of telling the boys’ story, interspersed with dreamlike touches and scenes from an unfinished biopic on the boys directed by Ken Russell, who appears as himself. There is much humor in BROTHERS OF THE HEAD, but dramatic emotion runs high as well. Luke and Harry Treadaway provide authentic and powerful debut feature performances as Tom and Barry Howe. Their ease and familiarity with each other make for convincing lead performances. The British supporting cast is top notch, sprinkled with delightful cameos from Jonathan Pryce, Jane Horrocks and the afore-mentioned Russell. There’s lots of loud, punk music performed by the cast that add a refreshingly convincing feel to a film that’s surreal and somewhat difficult to categorize.
“As an interesting sidenote, 3/4 of the way through, the film melted dramatically eliciting gasps from the audience. While waiting patiently for some splicing to take place, a theatre manager poked her head in and said, ‘I think that was the end of the movie. I know it seemed abrupt, but it’s over. You should all exit the theatre now.’ To which several people in the audience shouted out, ‘No! It’s not over!’ It was a hilarious cap to a long day at a film festival. BROTHERS OF THE HEAD opens at the Kendall Square Cinema in July, and it comes highly recommended. 4 cats
This film was screened at the Provincetown International Film Festival.”
Bruce says: “BROTHERS OF THE HEAD is an extraordinarily challenging film. First, there is the subject matter. BROTHERS OF THE HEAD is the story of Siamese twins conjoined at the stomach, sharing a liver and a circulatory system. When a ruthless impresario writes their father a big check, the twins are taken away to Humberton – one of those stately British country estates – where they are placed in the hands of a seedy manager and are trained to become rock musicians known as Bang Bang. Then, there is the style. Using a mockumentary format to deliver an intense drama laced with black comedy, the directors turn a possible disaster into a riveting cinematic event. The action switches back and forth from present time to 1975 when the twins were in their prime.
“The twins’ success is due to the fact that they are musical trailblazers as well as being their own freak show. The focus of the story is on the psychological repercussions that the twins suffer from their rock musician experiences: as singing/writing artists; as two adults forced to physically share the same space; and as addicts. As in the case of many a rock and roller, drugs and alcohol play a big role in doing the twins in, cuttingshort a budding career.
“Tom (Harry Treadaway)is the more serious of the twins and everyone believes him to be more in control of his emotions. Barry (Luke Treadaway) on the other hand is a volatile sort, flying off the handle easily and predictable only in his unpredictability. In spite of initial appearances, BROTHERS OF THE HEAD is not a simple tale of good twin, evil twin.
“The details of the story are impossible to describe. It is dense and layered. Laura is a journalist who falls in love with Tom while covering the story of the twins. Ken Russell plays himself, a filmmaker who unsuccessfully attempts to do a film about the twins.
“Musically the film lies somewhere around the SEX PISTOLS’ punk sensibility although the timeframe is slightly earlier. The music is engaging and believable, not always the case where music is manufactured to be part of the story line. BROTHERS OF THE HEAD is a film that should be viewed more than once. 4.5 cats
“BROTHERS OF THE HEAD was screened at the 2006 Provincetown International Film Festival and was sponsored by Chlotrudis.”
Chris says: “The first time I saw this (at the 2006 Independent Film Festival of Boston), I did not entirely know what to make of it. The word ‘mockumentary’ naturally brings to mind Christopher Guest’s clever, deadpan skewering of benign, particular Americana. This film is vastly different: in adapting Brian Aldiss’ novel, directors Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe play it unexpectedly straight and serious. Along with the edge-of-the-world locales, a surreal tone and the incredibly strange story itself, it’s all enough to knock one sideways.
“In 1975, Tom and Barry Howe, 17-year-old twins conjoined at the stomach, are plucked from their home on a remote moor and, without delay, molded into rock stars. The boys are envisioned as a cross between a teen idol act (their svengali shows them footage of the Bay City Rollers) and an all-out freak show. Predictably, they follow the usual trajectory of getting exploited and poisoned by the industry—innocents turned on to copious amounts of sex and drugs. Intriguingly, the film suggests that once the boys start writing their own songs, they sort of invent punk. Also intriguingly, the film doesn’t shy away from the nearly erotic bond they have with each other, and how Barry’s assertiveness clashes against Tom’s internal quietude. Credit Harry and Luke Treadaway, the fraternal twins who play Tom and Barry. Both actors are excellent, easily enabling us to look past the outer freak and into the souls of their characters.
“For me, it took a second viewing for the film to fully cohere; there’s just so much to digest (the abusive manager, the intruding female love interest, the Ken Russell-as-himself cameos, etc;). However, rather than making an obvious crowd pleaser, Fulton and Pepe (previously known for the ‘real’ doc LOST IN LA MANCHA) have taken a decidedly artier route, one often reminiscent of early Todd Haynes or Derek Jarman. What a curious little film, probably destined for a small, fanatical cult, Still, after both viewings, its cruel, unusual beauty has lingered in my mind for days. 4 Cats”