Movie review by Greg Carlson

The winning, off-center rockumentary “Mistaken for Strangers” examines the fraternal rivalry of siblings Matt and Tom Berninger – the former the driven and successful lead singer of Grammy-nominated critical darlings The National and the latter a part-time moviemaker and full-time slacker who still lives with his parents in Cincinnati. Directed by Tom, the movie focuses less on the band’s music, although there are many shots of the musicians on stage during the world tour supporting “High Violet,” and more on the psychological insecurities that emerge when only one of two brothers with artistic aspirations attains the adulation and validation that comes with fame.

At the outset of the story, Tom accepts a position as a roadie/gopher with The National, even though he makes clear his intentions to record some kind of behind-the-scenes document of the experience. By way of claiming cinematic bona fides, Tom shows a few clips from his micro-budgeted splatter movies “From the Dirt Under His Nails” (“It’s about an insane animal trapper who resurrects the dead”) and “Wages of Sin” (“This one’s about a barbarian with an identity crisis who also goes through a murderous rampage”). Tom’s “American Movie”-esque cluelessness persuades the audience to root for him as a lovable loser underdog, but the film’s construction suggests a calculated level of comic self-awareness.

We are led to believe that Tom’s relationship to Matt affords him great access to the band and their admirers, but Tom’s incessant incompetence irritates tour manager and sound engineer Brandon Reid, as well as every other person who crosses Tom’s path. Tom arranges individual interviews with members of The National, always popping fatuous, idiotic questions that would be right at home in “This Is Spinal Tap.” He asks things like where The National will be in fifty years and whether band members go on stage with their wallets and identification. He talks his subjects into performing embarrassing bits of dialogue and arty turns to the camera. All of this is very funny, even if a great deal of it feels too good to be true.

At a tight 75 minutes, “Mistaken for Strangers” is not a concert film, and none of the songs are performed without editors Tom and Carin Besser (Matt’s spouse and one of the movie’s producers) cutting away to the next of Tom’s bumbling misadventures. Tom plays up his outsider-looking-in status, grumbling about the simple tasks he is asked, and usually fails, to complete. His camera catches National fans like Werner Herzog, Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Will Arnett, and during a political rally in Madison, Barack Obama. But Tom’s stargazing, boozing, and general irresponsibility come to an inevitable head, setting up the movie’s final act and the circumstances for Tom’s last shot at redemption.

Near the end of the film, while Tom is deep in post-production on the doc and his disorganized and illogical system of color-coded sticky notes inspires little confidence in fruitful completion, he addresses the camera: “Having Matt as my older brother kind of sucks because he’s a rock star and I am not.” The declaration, as obvious as everything else Tom has blurted, effectively summarizes the film’s agenda and sets up its triumphant conclusion, a killer performance of “Terrible Love” in which we see Matt sing his way off the stage and through the crowd while Tom follows behind, untangling the microphone cable, minding his big brother’s safety, and making peace with his spot in the shadows.