First 'Sisters Brothers' Clip Showcases Chemistry Between Joaquin Phoenix & John C. Reilly

We’re eagerly awaiting to hear what the first reactions for Jacques Audiard‘s “The Sisters Brothers,” and ahead of its Sunday Venice debut, we’ve got a new clip of Joaquin Phoenix and John C. Reilly as those rascal brothers Sister.

In the clip, we get a good feel for the dark humor Audiard is going for, as well as the magnetic display of personalities on display. Phoenix, Reilly, Jake Gyllenhaal and Riz Ahmed all do so many different things as actors but meld together like fine gold on-screen, and it’ll be exciting to see if this preview encompasses all the ribald Western revisionism the trailer promised.

If anything, we already know the western as a genre is poised for more entries willing to paint the wild, wild West for what it was, and Audiard’s got the background to give every devious nook and cranny the genre tried to cover up in its golden age. It was a dark time for the country as western expansion gave way to reveal the nation’s true heart at the time, one of ambition and hope but also greed and power (and rampant racism and misogyny and male violence).

Though this film is primarily a pitch-black comedy, don’t be surprised if Audiard touches on the tough truths about this period in history.

He’s bringing along Rutger Hauer and Carol Kane (!!) for the ride in what hopes to be one of the decade’s western musts. If Audiard is as eager to call the West out on its fool’s gold we think he might be (and draw the most out of that wicked ensemble), “The Sisters Brothers” might just be one of the overall standouts of the season. Even if it’s not, it’s sure to be a hoot. Annapurna going to bat for this one on the festival circuit gives you hope.

It’ll be riding into your town September 21, with festival reactions and a Playlist review arriving very soon.

Update: Here’s a 2nd clip: