DVD Review

Title: The Brothers Warner

Director: Cass Warner Sperling

Studio: Warner Brothers

Length: 94 minutes

Release Date: March 9, 2010

Reviewed by: Rhys Dowbiggin

If art reflects life and life is family, does that mean art reflects family? In our lives we have one bond that is unbreakable no matter what we say or do or think or feel: the bond of family. That doesn’t mean the bond of family cannot be fractured. A hard enough blow to anything and cracks are bound to show. It’s in the story of those cracks where the greatest drama lies.

The Brothers Warner is a documentary about the famed Warner family and their creation, Warner Brothers Studios. Warner Bros. pioneered the early film industry with the introduction of talkies as well as politically and socially educational films. The guiding principal of the studio was to educate, entertain and enlighten audiences. This is a documentary that does all three.

The story of the film is really threefold. There is the evolution of the studio as a business, the evolution of film as a medium, and most important, the evolution of the Warner family and the four founding brothers Harry, Albert, Sam and Jack. Looking at the film from each of the three perspectives and you will be thoroughly satisfied. As one film, it is not as strong.

The plots revolving around the studio are interesting from a historical standpoint. There are fantastic anecdotes about famous films and famous people. However, we are not offered anything relatable. This plot of the film is purely for educational purposes. Ditto to that about the evolution of film as a medium. It’s interesting from the standpoint of how far film has come from the guiding principals the Warners once operated by. Studio films are rarely educations anymore and not all that often enlightening. Entertainment is the word of the day. Being the case, The Brothers Warner does do that by taking an inward look at the name itself.

The real intrigue of the film revolves are the Warner family. If played out as a dramatic film it could stand on it’s own as a tale of rivalry, betrayal, and bitterness. As their father told them as young men, united they were their strongest. When Sam died as a younger man, it seemed to signal a change in the brothers. Harry and Jack no longer got along. The documentary eventually shows how Jack, a colourful character, convinced Harry and Albert to sell the studio only to go behind their backs and buy it back a day later essentially cutting both his brothers out. It is ironic how their lives are such perfect material for their art. Art imitates life, and in their case very much so.

What you’ll take from The Brothers Warner depends on what intrigues you most. Old souls will love the stories about the early days. Others will be attracted to the drama that existed in the family. The film focuses on one of the most recognized names in show business and shows how little we know about it.

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rdowb

 

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