The Other Brother

Directed by Mandel Holland
USA
2002
94
Remastered from Original Elements!

The Other Brother

Mekhi Phifer, André Blake, Michele Morgan, Tangi Miller

Martin (Mekhi Phifer- O, 8 Mile, “ER”) has spent his life being a good son, a good brother and a good friend, but his luck with women is all bad.  The soft-spoken arts columnists hasn’t had a date in three years since losing his fiancee to bi-curiosity, and when he meets Paula (Tangi MIller- Too Legit: The MC Hammer Story, TV’s “Felicity”), the pretty young art professor who lives upstairs, Martin’s lack of experience is all to apparent.  Enter brother Junnie (Andre B. Blake- Stepmom), and expert in scamming and scheming.  The ultimate “player” intends to teach Martin how to get any woman he wants.

Sporting a new look and a new attitude, Martin is becoming a regular Casanova as he spends every night on the prowl with Junnie.  But it isn’t long before reality closes in.  A missed deadline places his job in jeopardy, he’s losing the respect of his best friend, and worst of all, Paula is under the impression that he’s a womanizer.  Meanwhile, Junnie’s hustles are turning into hassles as both his landlady and his racketeer boss are demanding money he doesn’t have.  Do nice guys really finish last?  is responsibility a blessing or a cure?  When is being a player just too much work?  Martin and Junnie struggle with these questions against a backdrop of contemporary Harlem.

<p>A FRESH, FUNNY FILM. Distinctly of Harlem, and absolutely universal…marks the emergence of a wonderfully assured new filmmaking voice.—Sedona International Film Festival</p>