eyeCandy: the Brothers Grimm (2005) 3/5

Terry Gilliam is one of my favourite directors. He is one of the few directors that is as big or a bigger draw than the actors in his movies, i.e. you go see a Terry Gilliam movie b/c Terry Gilliam directed it, not just because it has big stars playing the parts. From his roots as the lone American in the Monty Python troupe, Gilliam has brought us such unique visions as Brazil, 12 Monkeys, and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

Although Gilliam's rich touch and visual artistry are certainly apparent in the Brothers Grimm, they are, unfortunately, one of the few real highlights of the movie. It's not that the Brothers Grimm is that bad, it's just that it doesn't seem to know what it wants to be as a movie. Even though Matt Damon and Heath Ledger give it their best as the titular Brothers, the movie is more satisfying to just sit back and look at than it is to pay much attention to. Gilliam's trademark larger than life sets are here in all their glory, but someone seems to have forgotten to pay some much needed attention to that oft-ignored element of movies today - the story.

In a radical reinvisaging of the historical Grimms, here the Brothers are actually con men, dispelling supernatural oddities of their own creation for profit until it seems that some stories have actually come to life. The movie's concept, although inspired, never seems to be fully realized.

I really wanted to love this movie, and I can enjoy watching it, but it doesn't come close to what I've come to expect from Gilliam - a sad fact given that his somewhat indulgent and obsessive filmmaking style prohibits him from producing movies at the rate that they'd be happily consumed.