''The Brothers'' is a British film melodrama of 1947, starring

Patricia Roc Patricia Roc (born Felicia Miriam Ursula Herold; 7 June 1915 – 30 December 2003) was an English film actress, popular in the Gainsborough melodramas such as ''Madonna of the Seven Moons'' (1945) and '' The Wicked Lady'' (1945), though she only ...

, Will Fyffe and

Maxwell Reed Maxwell Reed (2 April 1919 – 31 October 1974) was a Northern Irish actor who became a matinee idol in several British films during the 1940s and 1950s. Biography Early Years Reed was born in Larne. He left school aged fifteen to work on ...

, from a novel of the same name by

L. A. G. Strong Leonard Alfred George Strong (8 March 1896 – 17 August 1958) was a popular English novelist, critic, historian, and poet, and published under the name L. A. G. Strong. He served as a director of the publishers Methuen Ltd. from 1938 to 1958. ...

Plot

In the

Western Isles The Outer Hebrides () or Western Isles ( gd, Na h-Eileanan Siar or or ("islands of the strangers"); sco, Waster Isles), sometimes known as the Long Isle/Long Island ( gd, An t-Eilean Fada, links=no), is an island chain off the west coast ...

of Scotland, a long and murderous grudge exists between two

clans A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clans may claim descent from founding member or apical ancestor. Clans, in indigenous societies, tend to be endogamous, mea ...

, the Macraes and McFarishes. The arrival of a serving girl (

) to work for the Macraes reinflames the conflict and causes an internal power-struggle between two brothers in the Macrae clan (played by

and Duncan Macrae).

Cast

as Mary * Will Fyffe as Aeneas McGrath *

as Fergus Macrae *

Finlay Currie William Finlay Currie (20 January 1878 – 9 May 1968) was a Scottish actor of stage, screen, and television.McFarlane, Brian (28 February 2014). ''The Encyclopedia of British Film: Fourth edition''. Oxford University Press. pp. 175-176; He re ...

as Hector Macrae *

John Laurie John Paton Laurie (25 March 1897 – 23 June 1980) was a Scottish actor. In the course of his career, Laurie performed on the stage and in films as well as television. He is perhaps best remembered for his role in the sitcom '' Dad's Army'' (19 ...

as Dugald McLeod and Alistair MacDonald * Andrew Crawford as Willie McFarish * Duncan Macrae as John Macrae *

Morland Graham Morland Graham (8 August 1891 – 8 April 1949) was a British film actor. Graham had a career on the stage spanning over 35 years. He was known as a character actor, but also wrote a one act comedy, ''C'est la Guerre'', which was first perfo ...

as Angus McFarish * Megs Jenkins as Angustina McFarish * James Woodburn as Priest * David McAlister as George McFarish * Patrick Boxill as The Informer *

David Keir David Keir (1884–1971) was a British film actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, rad ...

as Postman

Production

Development

L.A.G. Strong's novel was published in 1932. Strong was a friend of David MacDonald and in 1936 they agreed to make a film of the novel together. Plans were delayed until after the war, during which time MacDonald established himself as a leading documentarian. MacDonald took the project to Sydney Box who was enthusiastic about making it. Box wanted

Ann Todd Dorothy Ann Todd (24 January 1907 – 6 May 1993) was an English film, television and stage actress who achieved international fame when she starred in 1945's '' The Seventh Veil''. From 1949 to 1957 she was married to David Lean who directed h ...

, star of ''

The Seventh Veil ''The Seventh Veil'' is a 1945 British melodrama film directed by Compton Bennett and starring James Mason and Ann Todd. It was made by Ortus Films (a company established by producer Sydney Box) and released through General Film Distributors in ...

'', to play the lead, as the second part of the two-picture million dollar contract she signed in the wake of the success of ''The Seventh Veil''. '' Daybreak'' was to be the first and in March 1946 Box said he hoped to star Todd in ''The Brothers'' after that film. Box wanted

Emlyn Williams George Emlyn Williams, CBE (26 November 1905 – 25 September 1987) was a Welsh writer, dramatist and actor. Early life Williams was born into a Welsh-speaking, working class family at 1 Jones Terrace, Pen-y-ffordd, Ffynnongroyw, Flints ...

to play John and

Michael Redgrave Sir Michael Scudamore Redgrave CBE (20 March 1908 – 21 March 1985) was an English stage and film actor, director, manager and author. He received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in ''Mourning Becomes Elec ...

to play Fergus. Emlyn Williams dropped out and was replaced by

Eric Portman Eric Harold Portman (13 July 1901 – 7 December 1969) was an English stage and film actor. He is probably best remembered for his roles in several films for Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger during the 1940s. Early life Born in Halifax, ...

. Portman refused to make a film with Todd and was replaced by Duncan Macrae. Redgrave dropped out to make '' Fame is the Spur'' and was replaced by

. Todd did not want to work with Reed as she had not enjoyed working with him on ''Daybreak''

played the role instead. Roc was reluctant to take a role refused by Todd but eventually agreed. Her fee was £5,000. (Roc had reportedly been kicked off ''Diggers Republic'' – which became '' Diamond City'' – because of her involvement in a divorce scandal. She made the film after shooting ''

Canyon Passage ''Canyon Passage'' is a 1946 American Western film directed by Jacques Tourneur and set in frontier Oregon. It stars Dana Andrews, Susan Hayward and Brian Donlevy. Featuring love triangles and an Indian uprising, the film was adapted from the ...

'' in Hollywood.) MacDonald knew the film would be troublesome censorwise because of the material. "We hope to get by in the French way", said MacDonald. "Rape, murder and nature, that's about all."

Filming

The unit moved to the Isle of Skye in July 1947. Roc ended up enjoying working on the film and said the role was her favourite, in part because of an eight-week location shoot on the

Isle of Skye The Isle of Skye, or simply Skye (; gd, An t-Eilean Sgitheanach or ; sco, Isle o Skye), is the largest and northernmost of the major islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate from a mountainous hub dominated b ...

. Studio work took place at Shepherds Bush in September 1946.

US Version

The film encountered censorship challenges for its release in the US, in part because of its depiction of illicit whisky manufacturing. However Sydney Box managed to get the film passed by the US censors by adding some shots where detectives arrived on the island to break the operation, and filming an ending where the hero and heroine – the "good" characters – survived instead of being murdered. There were three main changes: *removal of a seduction scene on a beach *changing the original tragic ending (Patricia Roc is killed by her lover) to a happier one (she survives) *addition of a scene where John Laurie admits the collective guilt of the fisherman in the death of a man *Duncan Macrae is no longer executed by fishermen - it is implied he will be punished legally

Critical reception

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' described ''The Brothers'' as: "Starkly uncompromising... No attempt has been made to win favor of those who cannot stomach a grim story, and even the contemplated happy ending (not in the book) has been discarded in favor of one more logical, It will not be everybody's entertainment, and will do best with discriminating au-diences here and in the U. S. Drawing cards are a fine cast, good story, grand direction and splendid camera work and music score. Patricia Roc contributes her best performance to date, and newcomer Maxwell Reed, establishes himself in a part that would have been a natural for James Mason." ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' wrote, "Patricia Roc is lovely in form and grace, but her hair-dos, her dresses and her expressions smack more of

Elstree Elstree is a large village in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire, England. It is about northwest of central London on the former A5 road, that follows the course of Watling Street. In 2011, its population was 5,110. It forms part of t ...

than of the

Hebrides The Hebrides (; gd, Innse Gall, ; non, Suðreyjar, "southern isles") are an archipelago off the west coast of the Scottish mainland. The islands fall into two main groups, based on their proximity to the mainland: the Inner and Outer Hebri ...

Box-office

The film incurred an estimated loss of £55,700.

Modern reputation

The film's reputation has risen in recent years. An article in ''The Scotsman'' praised the film saying:

There is sex, there is violence, there is nudity and there is one of the most shocking killings ever portrayed in a mainstream movie. An informer, who has reported illicit whisky trafficking, is bound hand and foot, with cork floats under his armpits and a fish tied to his cap. He is then sent bobbing out to sea, to await a passing seabird that will spot the fish and dive hundreds of feet to pierce fish, cap and skull in a single fatal movement....''The Brothers'' is... the skeleton in the cupboard no-one talks about. It bears more resemblance to a Quentin Tarantino film than one by
Powell and Pressburger The British film-making partnership of Michael Powell (1905–1990) and Emeric Pressburger (1902–1988)—together often known as The Archers, the name of their production company—made a series of influential films in the 1940s and 1950s. T ...
.

Producer Christopher Young said "It's slightly bizarre, some very good performances, fantastic cinematography, but quite a strange script, really quite dark." David Parkinson, a reviewer for the ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves ...

'', wrote: "while Stephen Dade's images of

Skye The Isle of Skye, or simply Skye (; gd, An t-Eilean Sgitheanach or ; sco, Isle o Skye), is the largest and northernmost of the major islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate from a mountainous hub dominated ...

are highly evocative, precious little passion is generated by orphaned Patricia Roc and Andrew Crawford, even though she's the housekeeper of his deadliest rival (Finlay Currie). Part of the problem is the straightlaced nature of postwar British cinema, which kept emotions firmly in check.;''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program listings information as well as entertainment and television-related news. The company sold its print magazine division, TV Guide Magazine LLC, in 2008. Corporat ...

'' called the film a "fair effort with technical talent outweighing the performers"; but ''Eye for Film'' found the film "startlingly bold and suggestive for its time...surprisingly gripping."

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brother, The 1947 films 1947 drama films British drama films British black-and-white films Films directed by David MacDonald (director) Films with screenplays by Muriel Box Films with screenplays by Sydney Box Films produced by Sydney Box Films shot at Lime Grove Studios Films set in Scotland Melodrama films 1940s British films 1940s English-language films