Movie Review: The Brothers Grimm
Directed by Terry Gilliam
You'd expect this to be amazing. You'd expect it to
be filled with brilliant writing and incredible performances. Even has one of my
favorite actors in it, Jonathan
Pryce.
But. And, like an elephant's, it's a big but. But the writing was mediocre at best. The performances were flat and disinterested. And Pryce was boring.
The initial premise, two brothers doing a bit of late 18th Century ghostbusting, appeals to me, even when you discover quite early in the film that they are frauds. The mechanical antics seem out of place, r ight down to the tuning fork and music box concoction Will pulls out in order to determine the safety of a supernatural location. Using pulleys and fireworks, flashy equipment and shiny armor, the Brothers vanquish all manner of beasties, all played by two of their coworkers. It's a lot like my Halloween show, without the witty repartee during construction.
Then there's the real supernatural, the really real enchanted forest and the five hundred year old queen who controls it. With her as the center piece, all the stories by the Grimms come together... Little REd Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, The Gingerbread Man, Cinderella, Snow White... like Into the Woods, a conglomeration of the tales serves as the backdrop for what could be delightful storytelling. But isn't.
I loved Brazil. I still do. I believe it to be one of Gilliam's best movies ever. And possibly the first time I ever saw Jonathan Pryce on the screen as the delusional Sam Lowry. I even liked The Adventured of Baron Munchausen, for which I have been brutally criticized. But since then, Gilliam's films seem to be lacking something. Perhaps the rest of the Monty Python crew. For whatever reason, Gilliam's work seems to fall short of the brilliance it could attain.
The final word? Rent it. Catch it on HBO. Don't spend any real money on it.
But. And, like an elephant's, it's a big but. But the writing was mediocre at best. The performances were flat and disinterested. And Pryce was boring.
The initial premise, two brothers doing a bit of late 18th Century ghostbusting, appeals to me, even when you discover quite early in the film that they are frauds. The mechanical antics seem out of place, r ight down to the tuning fork and music box concoction Will pulls out in order to determine the safety of a supernatural location. Using pulleys and fireworks, flashy equipment and shiny armor, the Brothers vanquish all manner of beasties, all played by two of their coworkers. It's a lot like my Halloween show, without the witty repartee during construction.
Then there's the real supernatural, the really real enchanted forest and the five hundred year old queen who controls it. With her as the center piece, all the stories by the Grimms come together... Little REd Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, The Gingerbread Man, Cinderella, Snow White... like Into the Woods, a conglomeration of the tales serves as the backdrop for what could be delightful storytelling. But isn't.
I loved Brazil. I still do. I believe it to be one of Gilliam's best movies ever. And possibly the first time I ever saw Jonathan Pryce on the screen as the delusional Sam Lowry. I even liked The Adventured of Baron Munchausen, for which I have been brutally criticized. But since then, Gilliam's films seem to be lacking something. Perhaps the rest of the Monty Python crew. For whatever reason, Gilliam's work seems to fall short of the brilliance it could attain.
The final word? Rent it. Catch it on HBO. Don't spend any real money on it.
Posted: Sun - August 28, 2005 at 04:52 PM
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Published On: Mar 02, 2007 07:50 PM
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Published On: Mar 02, 2007 07:50 PM