Things Are Looking Grimm

The Brothers Grimm tells the story of the two story tellers and how they collected their fables and legends. In Gilliam's version of their lives, the Grimms collect the legends, then use their knowledge of them to swindle money for the more superstitious folk. When we first meet them as adults, they are planning to exorcise the soul of a witch that has been haunting the mill of a small town. With the help of two actors of less than average intelligence, they manage to fool the town and take the money. Things are going well until they are forced by a French general to deal with a legend that is only all too real. (Quick side gripe here: The French were French, but the Germans all spoke with British accents? Why?)

The concept of brothers Grimm as medieval Ghostbusters (whether real or fake) was intriguing, though I kept waiting for Venkman to show up. The visuals for the most part were impressive. The wolf, well, let's just say it was the big exception to that statement. The dialogue and performances were ordinary, but expectedly so. A bit overlong at just shy of 2 hours, the film seemed unsure whether it wanted to be slapstick, horror or a fairy tale all its own. This was really the film's downfall, but was also part of what made it compelling. Did I feel it could have been better? Much better. But did I enjoy it? Yes, I did. I'll not recommend it, but neither will I dissuade you from going if you are so inclined.

Until later...