He died amongst cattle and fowl, in a bed stained by time and grime. As he passed, his brothers slept just inches away. He died in his sleep, they say. The authorities disagree.
"Brother's Keeper" was the directorial feature debut of Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky, today best known for their "Paradise Lost" documentary series. Quietly eerie, the film revolves around four brothers – Delbert, Bill, Lyman and Roscoe, all semi literate – who lived together for 60 years in a small farmhouse. On June 6th, 1990, Bill is found dead from suffocation and Delbert is arrested, allegedly for confessing to the crime.
Like the "Paradise Lost" series, "Keeper" is primarily about the way in which outcasts and the marginalised are entrapped by the police, forced to give confessions and are subject to bigotry (incest and homophobic allegations). The film's "big themes" are less interesting, though, than the many quiet moments captured by Berlinger's camera. And so we watch as these brothers confront the shocking fact that others view them as being "abnormal". We watch as they realize that others view them as being "relics from another time". We then watch as they subtly change, their mannerisms, vocabulary and inflections altered by mere contact with others. Interesting too is the way local townsfolk embrace and come to the family's defence. Bill's death was a "mercy killing" they insist.
Primal, compassionate and a little creepy, "Brother's Keeper" is a strong documentary by a duo who specialise in the macabre.
8/10 – See "Murder on a Sunday Morning" and "Capturing the Friedmans", two masterpieces in this genre.
"Brother's Keeper" was the directorial feature debut of Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky, today best known for their "Paradise Lost" documentary series. Quietly eerie, the film revolves around four brothers – Delbert, Bill, Lyman and Roscoe, all semi literate – who lived together for 60 years in a small farmhouse. On June 6th, 1990, Bill is found dead from suffocation and Delbert is arrested, allegedly for confessing to the crime.
Like the "Paradise Lost" series, "Keeper" is primarily about the way in which outcasts and the marginalised are entrapped by the police, forced to give confessions and are subject to bigotry (incest and homophobic allegations). The film's "big themes" are less interesting, though, than the many quiet moments captured by Berlinger's camera. And so we watch as these brothers confront the shocking fact that others view them as being "abnormal". We watch as they realize that others view them as being "relics from another time". We then watch as they subtly change, their mannerisms, vocabulary and inflections altered by mere contact with others. Interesting too is the way local townsfolk embrace and come to the family's defence. Bill's death was a "mercy killing" they insist.
Primal, compassionate and a little creepy, "Brother's Keeper" is a strong documentary by a duo who specialise in the macabre.
8/10 – See "Murder on a Sunday Morning" and "Capturing the Friedmans", two masterpieces in this genre.