Brothers of the Head

One of the newer genres of film seems to be the ‘mockumentary’, a fictional movie made in the style of a real documentary. At their best films of this genre are witty, usually making you wonder if they are in fact true. "Brothers of the Head’ is such a film; created by two men who are best known for their actual documentaries, Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe. This pair takes the most outrageous subject matter imaginable and do it so well that you at times forget it is fiction. A mockumentary about the fast paced world of punk music would normally be interesting enough but Fulton and Pepe add a much unexpected twist, the punk stars are conjoined twins. Many have called the artists involved with the punk rock movement a bunch of freaks. This film just takes that premise and makes is more literal than most. The story was adapted from Brian Aldiss' novel by screenwriter Tony Grisoni, who penned "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas". Even though the film pokes fun at the style of music it never demeans either the real participants of the musical style or people who are conjoined twins. The film is funny without being mean spirited.

Barry and Tom Howe (Luke and Harry Treadaway) were born joined at the torso just above the stomach. Their parents ostensibly sold the twins to a sleazy impresario, Zak Bedderwick (Howard Attfield). He planed to create a rock group featuring the boys adding novelty to ensure some degree of success. When he is accused of exploiting the boys he calmly responds that he ahs never exploited anyone who didn’t want to be exploited. He sets the twins up with an equally greedy manager, Nick Sidney (Sean Harris) and they set off not to make music history but to make as much money as they possibly can. They create the group the Bang Bangs, which is to be fronted by Tom on guitar and Barry on raspy vocals. The boys are taken to Bedderwick’s dilapidated house in the country to be groomed for their ‘stardom’. The twins may be physically joined but they do manifest completely different personalities. Tom is more outgoing, more socialized. In contrast Barry is somewhat withdrawn and sullen but frequently bullies his sibling. Their first song would be "Two-Way Romeo" a conjoined love song of sorts. As the film focuses on the preparation and rehearsals the audience gets to witness how the young men are drawn into a world driven by the hope of fame and the temporary solace of drugs and alcohol. Much of the film is a documentary within a mockumentary. American film maker Eddie Pasqua (Tom Bower) is seen making a film about the boys that includes some retrospective comments by various people including real life Ken Russell, appearing as himself. Much of the story is how two rather clean cut youths are drawn into a seedy, dark world. Everyone who claims to be concerned with their best interests is actually in it for whatever money could be had. Laura Ashworth (Tania Emery) is a journalist who becomes too involved with her subjects, particularly Tom, pushing the boys into diva like demand and self destruction. There is footage of the twins playing gigs at local pubs. The crowd goes wild as they lift their shirt and pull at the band of skin holding them together. As their success grows the clock starts ticking towards self destruction.

The film almost has the feel of an extended edition of VH1’s ‘Behind the Music’. It details how the quest for fame results in the waste of two young lives. Since we have all seen an episode or two of this series or at least are aware of it we are predisposed to knowing that the ending will not be what the young men expected. The directors give a great feel to the film. The cinematography is incredible. The often grainy look gives an intimate feel to the work. The colors of the film are pushed to the red giving a vintage look. You can almost believe that this film languished in the BBC vaults for almost three decades. Typical of many real documentaries there is a large dose of voyeuristic intrusion. The boys are seen in the bath and dressing; the camera never blinking or affording them any undocumented personal moments. There is a cautionary tale here. The boys do have talent but were too much under the influence of people with their own agendas. To others the condition of the young men is a novelty but this is real to Tom and Barry. The film shows how they have to cope with using their condition as a means to gain the fame they desire. Fulton and Pepe draw the audience in to the story; not by exploiting the conjoined nature of the boys but by focusing on their humanity. The audience is able to become emotionally invested in the pair even though most of us cannot begin to understand what life for the twins must be like. Certainly, another highlight is the music. Even though I personally am not a fan of the punk genre the music was excellent.

Non conjoined twins Luke and Harry Treadaway do an incredible job as the leads. They not only capture their characters with perfection they embody the attitude of the punk movement. Harry had a little more acting experience than his brother but both of them deport themselves extremely well here. They provide an energy that leaps off the screen and pulls the audience in. Howard Attfield may seem like the villain on some levels but he plays Zak as a man with his own strange sense of guidelines. He is up front about exploiting the boys and giving them a shot at what they want. It just happens that he will personally profit. He helps the audience look at the system as the bad guy, not his character.

Once again the Independent Film Channel scores a direct hit with this DVD release. I am constantly amazed at how they can bring out some of the most interesting yet largely unknown films to the public. Initially, when I heard I was to review a film about conjoined twins in a punk rock band I didn’t know how I could relate to it. IFC has done it again with an interesting film that captures the imagination. The video is intentionally aged with a color balance pushed to reinforce that look. The Dolby two channel surround sound adds to the intimate feel of the work. Even though this film lacks the full six speakers audio most DVD collectors expect that format would be over kill here. There are some deleted scenes and previously unreleased footage but over all this is a disc you buy for the film not the extras. Put aside any thoughts that this is a weird little film, it is a work that deserves to be seen.

Posted 11/9/06