History Film / Brother1997

* BlackAndGrayMorality: Danila is a xenophobic gun-for-hire who defaults to violence as a first response to any problem. However, the people he goes up against [[KickTheSonOfABitch tend to have it coming]].

* AmbiguousDisorder: There's something decidedly "off" about Danila. He's quiet, socially awkward, and unbothered by death and violence. At least some of it stems from his wartime trauma.

* FauxAffablyEvil: Roundhead, despite his hobby of making up silly sayings, is clearly cruel for cruelty's sake.

* TheMafiya: The main antagonists of the film are this, what with the movie taking place in Russia.

* PoliticallyIncorrectHero: Danila claims to dislike Chechens (probably due to his service in the First Chechen War), Americans and Jews. However, he rarely acts on his prejudices and tries to judge people fairly regardless of race.

* SlasherSmile: Roundhead has one on his face, when he watches [[spoiler:as his thugs rape Sveta.]]

* NinetiesAntiHero: Danila may be the TropeCodifier for Russian cinema. He lives in a CrapsackWorld where everyone is left fending for himself, he has sociopathic tendencies, solves his problems with violence and clearly has trouble with normal human interaction. On the other side he has strong principles and his very selfless.

By popular demand, a sequel (''Film/{{Brother 2}}'' aka ''Brat 2'') was released in 2000, but any hope for a third installment was tragically extinguished in 2002, when Sergei Bodrov and his crew were killed by an avalanche while filming an unrelated movie in the Caucasus mountains.

Made with practically [[NoBudget no money]], ''Brat'' enjoys cult status in Russia due to its valuable social commentary, a fantastic soundtrack consisting mostly of Russian rock songs, and an accurate depiction of lawless Russian realities in the 1990s. The film's protagonist Danila has also become something of an icon: while neither conventionally intelligent or charismatic, he has street smarts and strong principles, and is relatable as a Russian everyman (he has served in the army, listens to Russian rock, wears secondhand clothes, and always stands up for the oppressed and the disenfranchised).

Young war veteran Danila Bagrov returns home from the [[UsefulNotes/TheChechnyaWars First Chechen War]] to a rapidly changing Russia and tenuous job prospects. His overbearing mother sends him to UsefulNotes/SaintPetersburg to work for his well-off brother, Viktor — not knowing that the latter has become a hitman for a mafia boss named Roundhead (Krugly).

Young war veteran Danila Bagrov returns home from the [[UsefulNotes/TheChechnyaWars First Chechen War]] to a rapidly changing Russia and tenuous job prospects. His overbearing mother sends him to Saint Petersburg to work for his well-off brother, Viktor — not knowing that the latter has become a hitman for a mafia boss named Roundhead (Krugly).

Young war veteran Danila Bagrov returns home from the First Chechen War to a rapidly changing Russia and tenuous job prospects. His overbearing mother sends him to Saint Petersburg to work for his well-off brother, Viktor — not knowing that the latter has become a hitman for a mafia boss named Roundhead (Krugly).

''Brat'' enjoys cult status in Russia due to its valuable social commentary, a fantastic soundtrack consisting mostly of Russian rock songs, and an accurate depiction of lawless Russian realities in the 1990s. The film's protagonist Danila has also become something of an icon: while neither conventionally intelligent or charismatic, he has street smarts and strong principles, and is relatable as a Russian everyman (he has served in the army, listens to Russian rock, wears secondhand clothes, and always stands up for the oppressed and the disenfranchised).

* ShellShockedVeteran: Danila says repeatedly that he was just a desk clerk when he was in the army. His familiarity with guns and hand-to-hand combat [[DissonantSerenity (as well as his general demeanor towards violence)]] show there's [[DarkAndTroubledPast more to the story than he's letting on.]]

* AmbiguousDisorder: There's something decidedly "off" about Danila. He's quiet, socially awkward, and unbothered by death and violence. At least some of this stems from his service in the Chechnyan war.

* CrapsackWorld: St. Petersburg circa the mid-1990's is portrayed this way. There are numerous shots that emphasize the city's [[SceneryGorn decaying buildings and industrial landscapes,]] which serve to reflect the lawlessness of the setting.

* AmbiguousDisorder: Danila is quirky, naive (bordering on simple) and has clear difficulties with normal human interaction, possibly due to war trauma.

* ShellShockedVeteran: Danila says repeatedly that he was a desk clerk when he was in the army. His familiarity with guns and his [[DissonantSerenity calm, matter-of-fact attitude towards violence]] suggest there's [[DarkAndTroubledPast more to the story than he's letting on.]]

* ShellShockedVeteran: Danila's time at war has certainly left its mark.

* HiddenWeapons: Danila uses plastic bags and Sprite bottles to hide a gun.

''Brat'' enjoys cult status in Russia due to its valuable social commentary, a fantastic soundtrack consisting mostly of Russian rock songs, and an accurate depiction of lawless Russian realities in the 1990s. The film's protagonist Danila has also become something of an icon: while neither conventionally intelligent or charismatic, he has street smarts and strong principles, and is relatable as a Russian everyman (he has served in the army, listens to Russian rock, wears secondhand clothes, and always stands up for the opressed and the disenfranchised).

* NinetiesAntiHero: Danila is the go-to example in Russian cinema; he's no sociopath, but he does tend to solve his problems with violence and clearly has trouble with normal human interaction.

* BilingualBonus:
** The Chechen and his men speak Ossetian among themselves, which means they are probably Ossetian and not Chechen. This shows that a) the casually xenophobic characters think all people from the Caucasus are the same and b) Viktor has been manipulating Danila's xenophobia towards Chechens.
** At one point Danila hassles a non-Russophone "American" (who's happily chatting away on his cell phone), telling him that America will soon bite it. The guy is actually talking in French, but Danila doesn't know that and jumps to conclusions.

* BilingualBonus: At one point Danila is giving a KubrickStare to a non-Russophone "American" (who's happily chatting away on his cell phone) and telling him that his America will soon bite it. The guy is actually talking in French, but Danila doesn't know that and jumps to conclusions.

* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep: "The German" (whose real name is Hoffman) and "The Chechen", who is actually not Chechen but Ossetian (at the very least he and his men speak Ossetian among themselves).

-->-- '''German'''

* TheAntiNihilist: Danila and German. They know they live in a CrapsackWorld, yet they never abandon their ideals.

* CoolOldGuy: "German" Hoffman, a homeless man who Danila saves from a thug and befriends (in exchange, German saves Danila's life when the latter gets wounded). Hoffman is a decent soul and something of a philosopher; his goal in life is to refute the old Russian proverb "What's good for the Russian is death for the German".

* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep: "German" (whose real name is Hoffman) and "The Chechen", who is actually not Chechen but Ossetian (at the very least he and his men speak Ossetian among themselves).

* IconicOutfit: Danila's knitted sweater. The sweater-plus-windbeater look that he sports throughout the movie was heavily imitated by Russian youth.

* OnlySaneMan: "German", an old homeless street peddler who lives in a graveyard and the most honest and decent character in the movie.

* ThickerThanWater: Despite Viktor being a [[ManipulativeBastard]] and luring Danila into a trap (admittedly, he did it at gunpoint), Danila [[EasilyForgiven forgives him anyway]], because Viktor is his brother.

* CombatPragmatist: He will distract and disarm opponents, as well as attack from behind, in order to get the upper hand in a fight.

* AgeGapRomance: Sveta is a little older than Danila, and Cat snidely asks him whether she's his mother upon seeing them together.

* DidNotGetTheGirl: [[spoiler:both of Danila's romantic prospects fizzle out by the film's end].]]

* NinetiesAntiHero: Danila is the go-to example in Russian cinema; he's no sociopath, but he does tend to solve his problems with violence and clearly has trouble with normal human interaction.

* RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil: The only moment we see Danila really angry is the moment when he discovers that [[spoiler: Roundhead's thugs raped Sveta.]] This is saying very much, because during the whole movie, Danila is very calm and collected.

* SexDrugsAndRockAndRoll: In Danila's neighborhood, there is a local group of punks, drug addicts, and club kids who mock Danila for loving Russian rock. At one point Danila goes clubbing with them, and they hang out to some very trashy eurodance.