25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Creative timidity undermines Rapid Heart double-bill, June 19, 2002
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1 (Lomoscope)
Soundtrack: Stereo
THE BROTHERHOOD (USA - 2000): A high school jock (Nathan Watkins) is targeted by the leader of a vampire cult (Bradley Stryker) who needs to transfer his soul into Watkins' body to survive...
THE BROTHERHOOD 2: YOUNG WARLOCKS (USA - 2001): A group of high school outcasts are given strange powers by an influential new student (Forrest Cochran) who turns out to be a murderous demon...
Following the unexpected success of his gloriously homoerotic horror-thriller VOODOO ACADEMY (2000) - particularly the unrated DVD version - director David DeCoteau set up Rapid Heart Pictures to exploit this newfound gap in the market. The company's inaugural ventures - originally paired together on Ventura's all-region DVD - are aimed specifically at teenagers, but they compare unfavorably with VOODOO ACADEMY, for a number of reasons.
Firstly, they were both filmed in less than a week (!), which precludes a certain degree of cinematic flair (despite DeCoteau's use of the 35mm scope format), and the plot is consequently driven by dialogue rather than action - too much dialogue, in fact. Secondly, whereas 'Voodoo' overcame numerous plot deficiencies by celebrating its erotic excesses to the max, stripping its hunky cast down to their designer underwear at every given opportunity, the 'Brotherhood' movies are a great deal less forthcoming in this regard. Indeed, during the commentary track he recorded for DVD, DeCoteau claimed that the blatant gay undertow in both movies is 'accidental', despite the unsubtle narrative device of a monstrous entity which takes the shape of a beautiful young man in order to seduce (figuratively speaking) another equally beautiful young man. And both films contain an eye-popping set-piece in which the two male leads take off their clothes and ravish a young girl who's been hypnotised into submission, but the coverage in both sequences is focused almost exclusively on the guys themselves, and the scene in 'Brotherhood 2' is staged and photographed in a manner which suggests that one boy is actually seducing the other! I mean, c'mon...
Part of the problem this time around (at least for an adult gay audience) is DeCoteau's apparent unwillingness to concede the homoerotic angle which he had explored so effectively in VOODOO ACADEMY. His insistence that these movies are intended for teenage girls suggests a reluctance to challenge established mainstream parameters. In other words, he's trying to have his cake and eat it by indulging a commercial preoccupation with beautiful young men whilst refusing to pursue this concept to its logical narrative conclusion. In 'Brotherhood 1', for instance, very little attention is lavished on Bradley Stryker's ultra-buff torso except for a couple of sequences during the latter half of the film, and the equally hunky Donnie Eichar (playing an axe-wielding doorman) remains fully clothed throughout! In 'Brotherhood 2', actor/model Sean Faris (most recently seen in the higher-profile action pic NEVER BACK DOWN [2008]) doesn't make much of an erotic impression in his first leading role, though he's clearly the sexiest guy in the entire movie.
All this would be immaterial, of course, if the production schedule had allowed for a stronger storyline, less reliant on prolonged stretches of mundane dialogue. In his own defence, DeCoteau argues that many actors - particularly those most suited to this kind of movie - refuse to do nude scenes (Stryker, sharing DVD commentary duties on 'Brotherhood 1', asserts his own reluctance to 'go naked' on-camera), though I suspect their caution is due more to the (virtual) all-male environment of DeCoteau's movies than a wholesale aversion to nudity as such. Refusal to do a full-frontal is one thing, but if his actors won't even allow rear-view nude shots, then the likelihood of a daring, sexually unambiguous horror film from this particular stable seems remote, to say the least. That aside, the 'Brotherhood' movies have been assembled with a fair amount of professional skill, and most of the acting is fine (Josh Hammond steals the show in part 1 as Nathan Watkins' not-so-nerdy sidekick, while the gorgeous Sean Faris holds his own against Forrest Cochran's low-key villain in part 2). Younger viewers may get a kick out of the simplistic storylines and sumptuous young actors, but there's little here to engage a wider audience.
One final point: DeCoteau's stated intention of filming everything in the scope format is laudable but impractical, given that these movies are aimed specifically at the video/DVD market. Rapid Heart's commercial 'trump card' - the showcasing of hot young guys in various stages of undress - is ill-served by an ultra-wide format which reduces shirtless actors to the size of a postage stamp and barely allows for decent close-ups, even on a 16:9 monitor. By contrast, the less extreme 1.85:1 ratio would encourage a tighter visual structure whilst retaining an essential cinematic dimension when viewed anamorphically on the new generation of widescreen TV's. The 'Brotherhood' movies are available separately in 4:3 video transfers which go a long way towards resolving some of these compositional difficulties whilst simultaneously cropping away almost half of the original image!
NB. 'Brotherhood 1' was released overseas as I'VE BEEN WATCHING YOU, while 'Brotherhood 2' - not a direct sequel to the original - is sometimes abbreviated as YOUNG WARLOCKS.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
More beefcake horror hijinks from director David Decoteau, January 4, 2002
It seems low-budget director David DeCoteau has created a new horror sub-genre. Explotation of women in horror films has been an expected part of the genre for decades. But now the tables have been turned. DeCoteau delights in casting hunky young guys and putting them throuh their paces, usually in nothing but a pair of boxerbriefs. DeCoteau has developed quite a following among teenage girls and gay men. His films appeal to both groups for obious reasons.
Brotherhood I and Brotherhood II are both available seperately in a no-frills DVD edition. But the Special Edition Double Feature disc includes both films in their widescreen format (approx. 2:35) and has a commentary track on both films featuring DeCoteau who is joined by actor Bradley Stryker on Brotherhood I. It's fun to hear all the behind-the-scenes secrets on low-budget movies like these. The disc also features a small photo gallery and trailers for both films.
The disc isn't mastered all that well ( digital artifacts are visible in some scenes) Still, it's well worth the price. If you're a fan of Davis DeCoteau's other films (I highly reccomend the lunar edition DVD of Voodoo Academy) you're sure to love these!
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9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Oh, brother!, November 2, 2002
These two films are geared to the gay market, with lingering shots on young studs; some other reviewers may deny this but they obviously didn't notice how the chief vampire eyed the young stud. (It's not that subtle!)
I can say though that these two movies are well filmed
The first movie is about a frat of vampires who want to initiate a young studly jock. These vampires are fangless though, using instead an amulet (similar in concept to 1983s "The Hunger").
I can't understand why, when two guys get into bed with a lady to feed from her they all remain in their underwear. She obviously gets a high from feeding them, but I can't see why... whether she's on drugs already, or not, because these vampires don't seem to be able to mesmerise their prey.
The second film is about a young warlock who tries to initiate 3 studs into a covern. This is even less interesting than the first, but just as elegantly filmed.
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