In 2005, Four Brothers was released in theaters and quickly became one of the biggest crime-revenge movies of the 2010s. It features four adoptive brothers, Bobby (Mark Wahlberg), Jerry (Andre 3000), Angel (Tyrese Gibson) and Jack (Garrett Hedlund), who grew up under the roof of a kind woman named Evelyn. Once they grew up and became adults, they all left home and went on to do their own things; Bobby appearing in and out of jail; Jerry becoming a family man; Angel joining the army, and Jack finding his way as a rock star. However, the brothers are brought back home when Evelyn is shot and killed during a robbery at their local corner store where she was a regular. Bobby, the oldest, is already on the hunt for revenge, but once they find out that it wasn't an accident and that Evelyn was set up, all four brothers get on board for what Bobby has planned. Four Brothers is one of the best revenge-based crime movies, and here's why.
The Stacked Cast
For this movie, filmmaker John Singleton brought together a diverse cast that turned out to have a ton of chemistry with each other, appearing as a real life family. In 2005, Mark Wahlberg was an already established actor, so audiences were used to his acting and found his character, Bobby Mercer, to be familiar to his other roles. Andre 3000 was also making it big in his group Outkast, with several albums already released, and his voice is so familiar, audiences might have been surprised that it was him in the role of Jeremiah Mercer.
Since 2017, Tyrese Gibson has been talking about a Four Brothers sequel that has reportedly been greenlit by Paramount, HipHollywood states. It would be exciting for a follow-up to the original, since the first was so successful, gaining more than 90 million in sales at the box office, and it would be interesting to see where the plot would be taken, especially without Jack. Also, since most of the men are a lot older now, it would be hard to not fit into the category of being corny or trying too hard, especially since there are so many remakes in the past few years. Hopefully it wouldn't be swept under the rug with all the others.
A Real Found Family
Movies that focus around siblings often have a hard time being distinctive about how close they are as brothers/sisters, and oftentimes can be seen as corny with how hard they try to make it look natural. Maybe it's because they're supposed to be adoptive brothers, but Bobby, Jerry, Angel, and Jack mesh so well together, it's easy to believe that they could be actually related. It's clear that there are roles established throughout the family, even before their mother died, and Bobby is the head of the household. They all know each other so well; keeping their spirits light as they work through grief, and struggle to even deal with those types of emotions.
PopCulture states that Mark Wahlberg was especially excited to take this role on, because of how much he related to Bobby Mercer regarding how much he loved his mom, as well as how aggressive he appears to be. There are small moments throughout the film that showcase sibling roles, such as when they sit down for Thanksgiving dinner and how they react to how each other eats. This is also prevalent in the hockey game that happens after the dinner; all four brothers teaming up as they destroy the other players who are just trying to have a fun Thanksgiving game.
Revenge Isn't Sweet
Throughout the entire movie, revenge is the one thing on the four brothers' minds after their mom is murdered at a corner store. They barely have time to grieve before they decide to take over the city they all used to live in; Bobby leading the manhunt for whoever called the set-up on their mother. When they figure out that it was Victor Sweet, the most notorious gangster of Detroit, the brothers don't let that stop them from trying to avenge the one woman who took a chance on them. Like normal brothers or any siblings anywhere, they fight and bicker almost every single day. However, one of their last big arguments comes at one of the worst times.
Garrett Hedlund plays one of his best roles as Jack Mercer, and his death scene is one of the saddest moments in the entire movie. While his brothers are pushing each other around with accusations that are flying, Jack opens the door when someone knocks, not expecting it to be death on the other side. He's very much the baby of the group, immature and hot-headed, so when he's hit in the face with a snowball, he immediately goes after the guy who threw it at him. He's then shot several times in the back and chest, and the revenge they were all chasing dies right then and there, as Jack bleeds out on the snow.