Bennie (Alden Ehrenreich) travels to Buenos Aires to find his brother, Tetro (Vincent Gallo).  Tetro has been away on a ‘writing sabbatical’ long enough for everyone to know that he has no intention of ever returning.  Bennie wants to rediscover who his brother is and find out what happened to him as to why he went on this sabbatical that he never returned from.

Francis Ford Coppola brings us a story of family secrets and troubles.  This might just be the first time that Coppola has made a film worth discussing since he made The Rainmaker in 1997.  The story is just so interesting to me.  When a family has strayed apart due to tension in the relationships it leaves a huge gap in people.  With Bennie coming to Buenos Aires to reconnect, whether by accident or purpose isn’t made clear, I can’t help but put myself in Bennie’s shoes and wonder how I would tackle this situation.  It would probably involve me smacking Tetro over the head a bit, but it does ring true in the film with how both brothers are inching closer and closer together throughout the story until eventually the atom bomb of a family secret is revealed.

What struck me as most interesting was not just the fact that Coppola decided to film the movie mostly in black and white, which is gorgeous, but the fact that it’s set in a foreign country.  The isolation created for our main character, Bennie, is something I like to see in film from time to time.

In regards to the cinematography, it is beautiful.  What I love even more than the black and white look of the film is the fact that when there is colour in the film it is clearly a memory that Tetro is remembering at the moment.  Due to the relevance of the memories in the film it makes them even more powerful than just an intermission from the main plot of the film.  Since these flashbacks only happen when something in the main plot reminds Tetro of the particular memory there is never any confusion for the audience.

The performances in the film were all brilliant.  Vincent Gallo as Tetro never felt trite, ever though it’s a role that you’ve seen played so many times in film.  However, my favourite performance of all came from Maribel Verdú as Miranda.  Playing the intermediary so many times between Tetro and Bennie to make sure that the right thing is done and the least amount of tempers rage.  It’s a role that I’ve seen in real life so often and it was portrayed so well here that my hat is off to Miranda.  She was even able to keep her independent nature while doing this.

Overall it’s a great art film that I’m sure not many people will end up seeing.  If you love dramas then definitely check this one out.

VERDICT: BUY IT IF YOU HAVE THE CASH, BUT DEFINITELY RENT IT AT THE LEAST

IMDB says 7.2/10

Rotten Tomatoes says 68%

I say 8.0/10