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“The Brothers
Bloom” is one of those fine little
films that will be seen by few, but enjoyed
immensely by those few. I rarely saw any
kind of advertising when the film hit theaters,
and even less once it was going to hit the
home entertainment market, and this is a
real shame. Far from being a blockbuster
in any sense of its being, the movie prefers
to tell a very engaging story… with
equally engaging characters.
The brothers in question, Stephen (Mark
Ruffalo) and Bloom (Adrien Brody) are first
introduced to us as children. Here we see
the direction their lives are going to take
as we bear witness to their first con job.
We then quickly jump ahead to see that they
have indeed turned into quite the successful
con men. However, Bloom is also at a point
in his life where he has become tired of
the life he has been living. He opts to
leave the partnership, but is ‘conned’
into working one last mark with his extremely
manipulative brother.
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Their target is one Penelope Stamp (Rachel Weisz),
a rich but rather unconventional and lonely woman.
The kind of woman that Bloom could fall in love
with…
To tell you anymore would be a disservice to
the movie. Artfully directed by Rian Johnson and
wonderfully acted by the entire cast, “The
Brothers Bloom” is as wildly eccentric as
its characters. The majority of the movie is lighthearted
and quite funny, but as the story progresses we
learn that darker forces are at work in the world
of swindlers and con men. It is a movie about
a con, after all. The question is… where
does the conning stop and the truth begin? I was
both glad and sad that the movie did not go in
the directions expected, but it made for a terrific
viewing experience.
The Bluray release of “The Brothers Bloom”
offers a terrific transfer, and Johnson’s
color palette comes across as warm and clear.
The same could be said about the audio track…
well not warm… but certainly clear. There
is no shortage of extras either, which was nice
for a film as well made as this one. You’ll
find a commentary by Johnson, where he is joined
by producer Ram Bergman. Once you get past the
fact that these guys are named Rian and Ram, you
can focus on Johnson’s rather frenetic commentary.
He’s honestly all over the place, but rarely
boring. Bergman doesn’t have as much to
say, but his input is quite humorous.
There is also a featurette comparing some of
Johnson’s sketches and storyboard work to
the finished film, an interesting little ‘making
of’ piece, and an image gallery. What is
not touched upon is the odd choice that the studio
had to release the film on DVD for rental a full
four months prior to its release to purchase.
Not sure I understand this type of marketing,
but I was hoping to hear something about it on
the disc. No such luck. Hopefully it will not
have hurt the film’s performance in the
home video market.
“The Brothers Bloom” is a very original
film, and one that I found to be extremely enjoyable….
even if it did not allow itself to fall prey to
the typical Hollywood conventions.
Directed by: Rian Johnson
Starring: Rachel Weisz, Adrien Brody, Mark Ruffalo,
Rinko Kikuchi, Maximillian Schell, Robbie Coltrane
Extras: Audio Commentary with Director Rian Johnson
and Producer Ram Bergman; From Sketch to Celluloid;
Bloom Behind the Scenes; Deleted Scenes, Image
Gallery
Specification: 1080p High Definition (2.35:1);
DTS-HD Master Audio
Studio: Summit
Release Date: 01/12/2010
MPAA Rating: PG-13
http://www.brothersbloom.com
We'll give The Brothers Bloom (Bluray) an A.
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