Movie Review: ‘Dr. Brinks & Dr. Brinks’

Review by James Lindorf

Dr. Brinks & Dr. Brinks, Josh Crockett’s directorial debut is a comedy of errors about siblings struggling with grief after the sudden death of their absentee parents. The estranged brother and sister, Marcus and Michelle Brinks (Scott Rodgers and Kristin Slaysman) are forced back under the same roof as they sort through their parents’ belongings and wait for clarification on their inheritances before parting for what may be the final time. Dr. Brinks & Dr. Brinks will make its theatrical debut in New York and Los Angeles on August 17th and will be available On-Demand September 4th.

In spite of its annoying title, I found Dr. Brinks & Dr. Brinks to be an entertaining film; mostly because I spent the entire 86-minute runtime wondering how deep their rabbit hole of mistakes could go. While entertaining, this dramedy was kind of a letdown, as both elements kind of failed. There were humorous moments and dramatic moments, but neither of them moved the needle very much. Crockett wanted his film to be low-key, which he achieved, but in his efforts to tell a melancholic tale of grief, he never really let his characters experience joy or despair, and when they did it was over quickly. It doesn’t really make you laugh, as the comedy is in its awkward situations and not traditional jokes. And you won’t cry along with the characters, because they can’t fully embrace their loss, and are therefore unable to get real closure.

Scott Rogers may have the most screen time, but the film really belongs to Slaysman, who has more needle-moving moments and showed a more extensive range of emotions. Overall, if the characters had lacked charisma, it would have been a struggle to finish. Though I wish some elements had been done a little better, it’s because I liked the characters that I enjoyed the movie. Ashley Spillers as Marcus’ wife, Alex, steals several of her scenes. She is consistently the film’s lone voice of reason, as the siblings’ grief management also drastically impacts her life.

Dr. Brinks & Dr. Brinks is more of a bleak and real-world take on loss than a film like This is Where I Leave You. That film placed comedy ahead of drama, while this one portrays a week in the life of a dysfunctional family coming to grips with losing what they didn’t know they needed. For the right audience that enjoys a nice understated film, this will be worth the price, but this is not a film with mainstream appeal.