The Brothers Grimm
It often drives us to do things (often stupid) that we know we'll regret
later on. You can tell director Terry Gilliam's (12 Monkeys, Monty
Python and the Holy Grail) been hurt very bad because his latest film,
The Brothers
Grimm, can only be looked at as one of those stupid mistakes
jilted lovers make in order to get back at the ones they loved.
The Brothers Grimm Movie Review
Terry Gilliam is one of those directors that has
such a unique style, you could spot a Gilliam film the moment the first
frame comes on screen. After getting his start with the comedy group Monty
Python, Gilliam came into his own as a director in the early 80's with films
like Time Bandits, Brazil and The Adventures of Baron
Munchausen. Each film delivered Gilliam's vision with a mixture of
political satire, comedy and a thrilling fantasy ride that are both surreal
and complex. After teaming up with Johnny Depp in 1998's Fear and Loathing
in Las Vegas, Gilliam disappeared. Details were very sketchy, but news
came out that he was re-teaming with Depp again to make what would be the
project he had always dreamed of making, The Man Who Killed Don Quixote.
Little did Gilliam know that his dream project would turn out to be his
worst nightmare. Freakish storms, a severe back injury to Depp and budget
problems forced the studio to shut down production and deny Gilliam the
chance to make a project he loved very much.
After being spurned by the studio, Gilliam made a hasty decision and from
out of nowhere announced his next project would be a take on famous storytellers,
The Brothers Grimm. The film would tell the story of brothers Jacob
(Heath Ledger) and Wilhelm's (Matt
Damon) transformation from con artists to heroes as the fairy
tales they used to con people with turn out to be real. This looked to be
the perfect film for Gilliam's style and had it been made during a time
when his head was a bit clearer it probably could have been. Instead we
get a film that looks like there was little effort put into it and can be
filed away as one of Gilliam's worst films ever.
Ledger and Damon team for The Brothers Grimm
The Brothers Grimm moves at a snail's pace and can get incredibly
confusing at times. The film lacks any type of cohesiveness and often feels
like large chunks have been cut out in order to get in at less than 2 hours.
Because of these possible chunks of story being cut out the pacing of the
film is seriously damaged. The film takes forever to get to the point and
when it does it fails to take off on the rollercoaster ride that is a trademark
with previous Gilliam films. The unique visual style and flair that is associated
with Gilliam is there, but is very uninteresting and the lack of quality
in special effects makes it look cheap and second rate. Like the jilted
lover theory, Gilliam's mind was obviously somewhere else cause if you've
seen any of his previous films you would know the guy is such a perfectionist
he wouldn't let these things affect his film. This is only the second time
in over 10 years that Gilliam has worked from someone else's script, but
unlike the superb 12 Monkeys, The Brothers Grimm just
feels like Gilliam had no connection with the characters or the story and
just went through the motions all the way up to the rushed and generic fairy
tale ending. Sure, The Brothers Grimm is supposed to have been
similar to the fairy tales, but instead of getting that feeling of watching
a fairy tale I felt more like was watching a TV movie by some amateur director.
Both Matt Damon and Heath Ledger give their best and are surprisingly entertaining,
but with an uninterested director, the rest of the production fails to capitalize
on their performance.
The Brothers Grimm should be a message to any established director
looking to do something to pass the time by because the project they really
want to do had some complications. If you're hearts not in it, it would
be best for you and your fans to stay away until you can focus your entire
attention on it. Due to Terry Gilliam's lack of interest this film could've
been so much more, but in the end winds up being a lackluster effort from
a director known to amaze us with his energy and unique offbeat style.
Score:  
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