The movie is at least twice as good as most people say it is and about half as good as we'd all hoped it would be.
This is mostly Gilliam's fault; he simply can't decide whether he wants "The Brothers Grimm" to be a whimsical fable, a satire, an action-adventure, a melodrama, or an outright slapstick comedy. As a result, the movie is a little of each, without much cohesion or coherence amongst the many divergent elements. The movie never sticks to any one point for very long, seeming instead like a series of Python sketches.
The production looks good, despite a forest that was constructed on a soundstage. The trees move in a creepy yet credible fashion, even if a CGI werewolf does not. Why are werewolves so hard to bring off in computer-animated fantasies? The lighting and photography help a lot in these areas, and the village looks great, as does the countryside, the old mill, and the tower, with hints of things mystical, magical, and dangerous everywhere.
I liked Gilliam's attempt to inject a little thematic substance into the proceedings as well: Jake's wanting his brother to believe in him and his fanciful notions for once, as well as Jake's learning to stand up for himself and overcome his low self-esteem. Yet Gilliam tries too hard, and by the movie's last forty minutes or so the whole narrative runs out of steam, seeming to repeat itself to no end.
Still, as with any Gilliam film, there are enough good bits in "The Brother Grimm" to make parts of it entertaining and amusing. The viewer may come away frustrated but hardly bored.
Video:
The picture quality is excellent, about as good as it could be. The film's original 1.85:1 aspect ratio is rendered a little closer to a size that will completely fill a 16x9 widescreen TV, measuring around 1.75:1 across my television. The high bit-rate, anamorphic transfer displays very deep blacks, setting off the rest of the colors nicely, while admitting a good deal of inner detail in darker areas of the picture. Although the film is mostly dark, reds and other bright hues are vibrant, and velvets and other clothing are well textured. Grain is largely absent, as are jittering lines and dancing pixels.
Audio:
Like the video, the Dolby Digital 5.1 audio is likewise excellent, especially in the use of the surrounds, with the sounds of thunder, lightning, rain, birds, creaking limbs, and creepy footsteps coming at the listener from all directions. The bass, although not particularly deep, is adequate for the occasion, and the overall tonal balance, a little forward, is nicely dynamic.
Extras:
The extras on the disc are not extensive in quantity, but they are above average in quality. An audio commentary with director Terry Gilliam starts things off, and his comments are well framed, well thought out, and well explained. It's a friendly, no-nonsense approach that works suitably in discussing a seriously lighthearted film. Next are twelve deleted scenes, all in widescreen though with less-than-finished sound. There is one action scene in a tree I thought was worthy of being included in the finished product. Then, there are two featurettes. The first, "Bringing the Fairy Tale to Life," about sixteen minutes, is brief and filled with the usual self-congratulations we often get in promos, yet it provides much good behind-the-scenes material as well. The second featurette, "The Visual Magic of The Brothers Grimm," about eight minutes with Gilliam and digital effects supervisor John Paul Docherty, is even more commonplace but still useful. The bonuses conclude with twenty-two scene selections and a chapter insert; English and French spoken languages; Spanish subtitles; and English captions for the hearing impaired.
Parting Thoughts:
For all its disappointments, "The Brothers Grimm" has enough going for it to warrant a look. But beware: As the Wife-O-Meter pointed out, despite the movie's fairy-tale subject matter, young children will undoubtedly be frightened by the unsightly monsters and sinister situations. Fairy tales are supposed to be scary, true, but this one is rated PG-13 for a reason.
The production looks good, despite a forest that was constructed on a soundstage. The trees move in a creepy yet credible fashion, even if a CGI werewolf does not. Why are werewolves so hard to bring off in computer-animated fantasies? The lighting and photography help a lot in these areas, and the village looks great, as does the countryside, the old mill, and the tower, with hints of things mystical, magical, and dangerous everywhere.
I liked Gilliam's attempt to inject a little thematic substance into the proceedings as well: Jake's wanting his brother to believe in him and his fanciful notions for once, as well as Jake's learning to stand up for himself and overcome his low self-esteem. Yet Gilliam tries too hard, and by the movie's last forty minutes or so the whole narrative runs out of steam, seeming to repeat itself to no end.
Still, as with any Gilliam film, there are enough good bits in "The Brother Grimm" to make parts of it entertaining and amusing. The viewer may come away frustrated but hardly bored.
Video:
The picture quality is excellent, about as good as it could be. The film's original 1.85:1 aspect ratio is rendered a little closer to a size that will completely fill a 16x9 widescreen TV, measuring around 1.75:1 across my television. The high bit-rate, anamorphic transfer displays very deep blacks, setting off the rest of the colors nicely, while admitting a good deal of inner detail in darker areas of the picture. Although the film is mostly dark, reds and other bright hues are vibrant, and velvets and other clothing are well textured. Grain is largely absent, as are jittering lines and dancing pixels.
Audio:
Like the video, the Dolby Digital 5.1 audio is likewise excellent, especially in the use of the surrounds, with the sounds of thunder, lightning, rain, birds, creaking limbs, and creepy footsteps coming at the listener from all directions. The bass, although not particularly deep, is adequate for the occasion, and the overall tonal balance, a little forward, is nicely dynamic.
Extras:
The extras on the disc are not extensive in quantity, but they are above average in quality. An audio commentary with director Terry Gilliam starts things off, and his comments are well framed, well thought out, and well explained. It's a friendly, no-nonsense approach that works suitably in discussing a seriously lighthearted film. Next are twelve deleted scenes, all in widescreen though with less-than-finished sound. There is one action scene in a tree I thought was worthy of being included in the finished product. Then, there are two featurettes. The first, "Bringing the Fairy Tale to Life," about sixteen minutes, is brief and filled with the usual self-congratulations we often get in promos, yet it provides much good behind-the-scenes material as well. The second featurette, "The Visual Magic of The Brothers Grimm," about eight minutes with Gilliam and digital effects supervisor John Paul Docherty, is even more commonplace but still useful. The bonuses conclude with twenty-two scene selections and a chapter insert; English and French spoken languages; Spanish subtitles; and English captions for the hearing impaired.
Parting Thoughts:
For all its disappointments, "The Brothers Grimm" has enough going for it to warrant a look. But beware: As the Wife-O-Meter pointed out, despite the movie's fairy-tale subject matter, young children will undoubtedly be frightened by the unsightly monsters and sinister situations. Fairy tales are supposed to be scary, true, but this one is rated PG-13 for a reason.
Average user rating (1-5):
[release]17038[/release]