Call Me Brother (Review)

Call Me Brother is a Delightfully Twisted Masterpiece!

Call Me Brother is an absolute train wreck of a movie. In other words, I could not look away no matter how much I wanted to. It’s a delightfully uncomfortable movie that will leave you squirming and whispering “no” to yourself for hours afterwards. It radiates shame in the best possible way and I loved every minute of it.

This ridiculous movie is about two siblings reunited after years apart (Christina Parrish and Andrew Dismukes). For some reason, their parents thought that each of them taking one in a divorce made sense or something. Either way, these two are thrust together at the worst possible time when their teenage hormones are in overdrive. The results are a taboo dance between brother and sister as they struggle with their feelings for each other. Let’s just say that things get really awkward really quickly.

Christina Parrish also wrote the script for Call Me Brother and I have to say, she has a wonderfully twisted sense of humor. The film is filled with moments that will make you shudder in curious revolution. It’s like walking through a carnival sideshow, you know it’s going to be upsetting but it’s totally worth the price of admission. It’s not just the siblings that have this effect on the audience either, their father (Asaf Ronan) is about as creepy as they come. Constantly making sexual innuendos towards his new wife while sloppily eating peaches in front of his kids. It’s enough to make your skin crawl. Of course, the rest of the characters in Call Me Brother are just as messed up, but it just sets the stage for the taboo relationship at the center of the film to be completely unavoidable.

What makes Call Me Brother work so well is that it never pushes things too far. Well, for the most part. The characters are all eccentric and quirky, but none of them ever become obnoxious. Instead, they manage to skate the line between off-putting and fascinating. It’s like something you might catch late night on Adult Swim but manages to keep itself a little more restrained than many of the shows I’ve seen on there lately. This is thanks to director David Howe who mixes the overwhelming with the underwhelming perfectly. While the themes, characters, and situations might be as bizarre as they come, Howe takes a straightforward approach to them which balances everything out. The film would feel almost bland if it weren’t for everything happening on screen and the absurdity of the whole thing. Somehow though this manages to keep the second-hand shame at bay and will leave you wincing in laughter instead.

Call Me Brother is a movie that is made for a very specific audience. I doubt that it would appeal to just anyone off the street. No, I think this film requires a very special and very sick sense of humor. If you have that though, then you’re going to love watching this twisted coming of age story. Parrish and Dismukes are delightful as the two of the most awkward siblings in the history of cinema. The shy chemistry they share is almost endearing if it wasn’t so disturbing. It’s a movie filled with innocent moments that almost go too far, but never quite cross the line. Don’t get me wrong, they’re still awkward as hell, but they manage to take the edge off at just the right moments.

I don’t know if any studios out there will have the guts to give Call Me Brother a wide theatrical release. However, if you get the chance to see it I really hope you give it a chance. It’s a carefully crafted film that seems effortless, which is a huge relief considering how this movie could certainly come off like it’s trying too hard. Like I said, Call Me Brother is a film that will definitely make you squirm in your seats. I mean that in the best possible way though.