Judge Daniel Kelly, DVD Verdict-- I'm not sure why Dax Shepard decided to make Brother's Justice, the bit-part comic's fake documentary about his trying to become a martial arts action star. Maybe he just wanted an I'm Still Here to call his own, although no viewer will be arguing about this project's authenticity after the final credits roll. Shepard has designed Brother's Justice to play purely for laughs, gently riffing on bruised Hollywood egos, absurd pet projects, and the ignorance that regularly accompanies fame. All of these themes were admittedly used better in Ben Stiller's Tropic Thunder, but that's not to say Brother's Justice doesn't have enough laughs to deem it rental worthy.
Brother's Justice just about holds together for its brief 80 minute runtime, providing a short but very digestible dosage of ridiculous comedy. Shepard doesn't make many fresh points during the course of the movie (he paints himself as deluded, self-important, and homophobic throughout); instead beating on the same satirical doors that have already served dozens of other lampoons. However, there's a true commitment to silliness here that can't be faulted, Shepard unafraid to make himself or anyone else look like a fool in pursuit of laughs. There are at least three very funny sequences in Brother's Justice, Shepard's knack for sly improvisations helping to sate audience desire for giggles during the drier patches. Ultimately I foundBrother's Justice to be a moderately entertaining and totally tolerable experience. It's uneven and unoriginal, but it's got chutzpah to burn.
Aesthetically the movie adopts a low-fi vibe (in an attempt to concoct the illusion of reality), only breaking from handheld camera work during occasional trailers (Tropic Thunder again?) for other stories Shepard is trying to make. Bar the very last of these (entitled "Jeung Guns") none really work, they're overproduced and generally unfunny. I expect these were added late in production to beef up the final product, but there was really no need, they add little to the sense of fun permeating from the picture.
-Full review at dvdverdict.com
