Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe (LOST IN LA MANCHA) mark an extraordinary narrative debut with this faux documentary about Siamese twin punk rockers in the early 1970s. Stunning photography by Anthony Dod Mantle, which occasionally borders on the abstract, augments a story already rife with dramatic potential, which was based on the novel by Brian Aldiss. Recalling Alan Clarke's iconic Sex Pistols biopic SID AND NANCY in its grittiness and the volatile relationship at its core, BROTHERS OF THE HEAD centers on Tom and Barry Howe (real-life twins Harry and Luke Treadaway). Siamese twins recruited at a young age by a sleazy producer, the twins are groomed for a stardom which will inevitably become their downfall. Barry's innate nihilism and anger make him the ideal frontman for the band, while Tom studiously learns the guitar from a bandmate (Bryan Dick). But the brothers' dalliances with drugs, girls, and fame, added to the psychological power struggles already at work between them, eventually put them on the road to destruction. Equal parts homage to rock 'n roll and an insightful character study of a complex relationship, the film fascinates while not taking itself too seriously: Ken Russell's unfinished biopic of the boys is particularly hilarious. The excellent soundtrack of original music by Clive Langer (ABSOLUTE BEGINNERS), actually played by the actors onscreen, tops off this impressive work.
(17 votes)
2.
With Brothers of the Head, Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe (the acclaimed directors of Lost in La Mancha) present their much anticipated debut feature. Written by Tony Grisoni (Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas), Brothers of the Head is the feverish, mind-bending odyssey of conjoined twins Tom and Barry Howe who were plucked from obscurity by a 1970s music promoter and groomed into a boy band. Grappling with impossible love, artistic rivalry, and a dark inner life, the twins embrace their freakishness and spit it back in the form of searing Punk Rock. Brothers of the Head is a raucous ride through the seamy underground of 70's rock, and an unsettling glimpse into a relationship that is as beautiful as it is destructive.
LOST IN LA MANCHA directors Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe team up once again for this provocative drama about a pair of Siamese twins who are hurled into a life of rock-&-roll by a Svengali-esque manager in the 1970s.
(16 votes)
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