The blurb I can hardly read on the cover says Enchanting and Terrific!!!
Cornelius1047
09-16-05, 09:03 PM
It wasn't that great.
Yes, it was. Well, IMO, of course. Loved it.
K
Coral
09-16-05, 09:18 PM
Should've been straight-to-video.
dadaluholla
09-16-05, 10:12 PM
I REALLY REALLY REALLY wish I would have just RENTED this on dvd instead of going to see it in the theater. ahhhh I guess I would have ended up wasting some money on it either way.
I couldn't sit through this again if it was free.
starseed
09-16-05, 10:28 PM
A disaster.
Just Lurking
09-16-05, 11:43 PM
I have not seen it but thought it might make a good blind buy.
Any more details about specs.
To keep this thread from getting locked by the mods. How about posting "It sucks" in the right place - Movie Talk's Brothers Grimm thread (http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=435016)
calhoun07
09-16-05, 11:51 PM
I would say avoid it even as a blind rental. Speaking as a Gilliam fan myself, it was just sub par entertainment. I never saw Van Helsing, but I read comparisons to that movie, which also got lousy reviews from anybody I know who saw it.
pro-bassoonist
09-17-05, 01:18 AM
Speaking as a Gilliam fan myself, it was just sub par entertainment.
You nailed it!!!!!!!!!
I am also a big Gilliam fan and this film is just...sad! Mr.Damon is so fake and pretencious...As to Monica Bellucci...as much as I adore her just about ALL of her English-speaking films are a total disaster (same trend as you could see happening with Juliete Binoche). She absolutely must stay away from Hollywood productions....English-language films are not her forte!!!
Pro-B
Willh51
09-17-05, 01:25 AM
I really liked this, I hope the disc has all the extra footage the director hinted at. It was often very campy, but a fun night at the movies for sure.
Forum Troll
09-17-05, 02:42 AM
I watched 10 minutes or so of this, whilst I was waiting for "Transporter 2" to start. That was enought for me. :fart:
Fincher Fan
09-17-05, 04:14 AM
I'm surprised that it sounds as bad as it does. I was planning on seeing it at the cinema but now I'll wait to rent it.
Cameron
09-17-05, 04:49 AM
yah i saw this one as well....gonna pass on the dvd....
Tyler_Durden
09-17-05, 05:37 AM
To me, that cover looks a lot better than the theatrical poster.
slowcloud
09-17-05, 06:13 AM
I was actually hoping to catch it in the theater, but it just came and went. I glanced at reviews and I was disappointed to see such negativity. Then I heard Gilliam didn't have the final cut. Poor bastard, first he was "Lost in La Mancha" and now this. I'll probably rent it out of curiosity. I wonder if it will have a feature-length making of...
mookyman
09-17-05, 05:01 PM
According to a recent article in Time, the theatrical cut is Gilliam's cut.
darqleo
09-18-05, 01:05 AM
Huge Gilliam fan here who was mixed about the movie, although I do want to watch it again. If it has TG commentary, I'm sold for sure.
And if you are blind buying it for Monica Belluci only, not to spoil the movie for ya, but she's hardly in it.
ThatGuamGuy
09-21-05, 12:24 PM
According to a recent article in Time, the theatrical cut is Gilliam's cut.
I'm not gonna say it's not, but I saw the film more than a year ago in a preview screening, and it was a Terry Gilliam movie. It had all the usual humor, the quirkiness, etc.
I saw the theatrical cut, and it was not a Terry Gilliam movie. The little traces of humor didn't fit anymore (Damon's character especially suffered), and the story was streamlined, which was a shame, because (a) that's not Gilliam's style and (b) the story wasn't that good.
The biggest change: the "Little Red Riding Hood" scene originally opened the film, and was in black-and-white except for the red hood. Much better than the lame flashback which, if it was in the other cut, was much much later in the film, because you weren't supposed to know what the repeated "magic beans" references meant until about an hour in.
I didn't hate the theatrical cut, but it was a big step in the wrong direction from the cut which I saw, which needed work ... just not the work they did on it.
Incidentally, at the screening, Gilliam said that Miramax was more-or-less forcing twenty minutes of cuts. So there's "final cut" and then there's "final cut", y'know?
buckee1
09-21-05, 01:32 PM
I too was somewhat disappointed in the film. To date, it's the only movie that I left to get a refill on my popcorn and drink and didn't really care what all I missed.
StimpsonJCat
09-21-05, 01:44 PM
I'm a huge Gilliam fan and I enjoyed this movie. Maybe it was due to lower expectations after all the bad press.
The extreme comments on the film (straight to video, etc...) crack me up. Everyone milage varies, but give me a break. I stopped caring about other people's reviews of films long ago.
I'll be picking the DVD up if it has a good price on release day.
Giles
09-21-05, 01:55 PM
Monica Bellucci :hump:
I may give this a blind buy.
It wasn't that great.
actually she's about 15 minutes (at the most) in the film. And Miramax were bozos buy handing out press photos of her character's demise - talk about spoilers.
12thmonkey
09-21-05, 01:57 PM
Bad reviews or not, I'm a Gilliam fan. I'll be picking this one up for sure.
Giles
09-21-05, 02:02 PM
But it was Terry Gilliam! Was it really that bad?
I actually didn't think it was that bad, I was entertained to a point, but I thought the biggest flaw was the acting from the three leads Damon, Ledger and the lead actress (I'm forgetting her name). Absolutely zero chemistry.
Ginwen
09-21-05, 03:49 PM
I almost didn't see the movie, after reading the reviews. I thought it would be boring. It wasn't boring. It wasn't perfect, but I enjoyed it pretty well and I'm glad I saw it. I'd probably put it between Time Bandits and Fisher King (but I've only seen it once so that could change).
For comparison, my opinion on other TG non-MP movies
Brazil: Great
12 Monkeys: Very good
Time Bandits: Good (even though it was slow in parts)
Fisher King: Good
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: OK, not great
Baron Munchausen: Just so-so, some cool stuff, but I got bored enough the one time I saw it that I haven't seen it again.
Edit: Jabberwocky (for the guy below): Didn't see it :o I don't know why, I've almost meant to, I just never have. I'll get right on it though!
Edit 2: Monica Belluci wasn't in it much, but she was really hot.
Edit3: Since this is DVD Talk, not movie talk, let me just say: I'll most likely be buying this.
Morf
09-21-05, 04:12 PM
And Miramax were bozos buy handing out press photos of her character's demise - talk about spoilers.
Wow, thanks for being a bozo yourself. Just because you were spoiled doesn't mean you need to spoil others. :mad:
Giles
09-21-05, 04:19 PM
Wow, thanks for being a bozo yourself. Just because you were spoiled doesn't mean you need to spoil others. :mad:
oh come on, every newspaper review of the film had that accompanied photo.
(sorry, corrected).
jmj713
09-21-05, 05:31 PM
For comparison, my opinion on other TG non-MP movies
What about Jabberwocky? That wasn't Monty Python.
My Sweet NeoCon
09-21-05, 09:27 PM
I'm a Gilliam fan and though I havent seen this yet, it looks good. Like a visual cross between Sleepy Hollow and Van Helsing.. both of which I like.
Toben
10-26-05, 01:56 PM
Disc details from DavisDVD:
Buena Vista's The Brothers Grimm is due on December 20th and we have all the details. The visually sumptuous film will be available with a 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer, Dolby Digital 5.1, an audio commentary with director Terry Gilliam, deleted scenes with optional director commentary, "Bringing the Fairytale to Life" and "The Visual Magic of The Brothers Grimm" behind-the-scenes featurettes. Retail is $29.99.
DjRidz
10-26-05, 03:46 PM
I love Terry Gilliam and can't believe how his pictures are always butchered and cut to pieces.
If there is a longer more Gilliam cut of the movie, will that ever see the light of day on DVD?
If so ill just wait for that and make believe he didnt finish this. He seems to do that.
Dr. DVD
10-26-05, 03:47 PM
That and Serenity will go on me X-Mas list! Brothers Grimm was unmistakably Gilliam with its characters and style, but it had studio meddling written all over it, especially when they cast an unknown whose only real qualification seemed to be that she had a hot body in the female lead as opposed to Gilliam's first choice, Samantha Morton. Morton might not have been hot, but she would have at least given a good performance as opposed to the wooden one we received. In short, I didn't like it that much, but will take it as a gift! :D
mike7162
10-26-05, 04:21 PM
I found this to be a very entertaining movie. It was a little unfocused in the beginning, and the shifts in tone was distracting, but once the motor got humming, I had a good time. I would love to see a Director's cut if there was one. This is pretty much what you get with a Gilliam film, whether it's his fault or not.
DeputyDave
10-26-05, 07:55 PM
Unless there is the rumored "Gilliam Cut" I won't be buying this. And I am a HUGE T.G. fan.
marcellusk
12-15-05, 07:52 PM
I haven't seen the film and planned on blind buying it but it doesn't look like it's gonna be on sale tues ($19.99 or $17.99 isn't worth a blind buy for me with such bad reviews) If it's as bad as i've heard....I may wait for a 2 for $20 sale.
darqleo
12-15-05, 07:59 PM
Huge Gilliam fan, I was lukewarm about this film, I do want it for my Gilliam DVD collection though, especially since it has a commentary track, but also not for $17-$19. I can wait a bit longer for it.
Josh Z
12-15-05, 08:10 PM
Although Gilliam had a lot of studio interference (as usual), when the movie was released he claimed that he got his desired cut out of it. I doubt we will see any more from it.
Jon2
12-15-05, 09:06 PM
I'm not particularly a Gilliam fan, but I did like the movie. Doubt if I'll get the DVD.
Now if they will only get Georage Pal's Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm out, I'll be all over that.
kms_md
12-15-05, 10:24 PM
i will pick it up to fill out my TG collection.
baracine
12-20-05, 06:36 PM
I just rented the DVD. Some thoughts.
1. It's truly a great film in that it is a very entertaining metaphor of the birth of Romanticism as a reaction of German nationalism to France's brutal occupation of Germany under Napoleon, i.e. the rebirth of the values of irrationality (like pagan fairy tales) in reaction to the so-called enlightenment rationality imposed from the outside by a conquering imperialistic nation at the onset of the Industrial Revolution.
2. The comparison to Van Helsing scared the bejeesus out of me as this film is, without fear of contradiction, the most soulless piece of CGI-based, video game-inspired pack o'caca to ever deflower a movie screen and lower the IQ of its viewers (if that's possible). The Brothers Grimm is nothing like that, thank God! It's a witty, well thought-out and finely acted film.
3. I had to laugh thinking back at the criticism The Day After Tomorrow received because of its CGI wolves which were judged by film sophisticates in this thread and elsewhere as "sub-par". I guess they hadn't seen the wolf in Brothers Grimm, whose shortcomings can be excused by the fact that it's a fairy-tale wolf disguising a human being.
marcellusk
12-20-05, 06:46 PM
I just rented the DVD. Some thoughts.
1. It's truly a great film in that it is a very entertaining metaphor of the birth of Romanticism as a reaction of German nationalism to France's brutal occupation of Germany under Napoleon, i.e. the rebirth of the values or irrationality (like pagan fairy tales) in reaction to the so-called enlightenment rationality imposed from the outside by a conquering imperialistic nation at the onset of the Industrial Revolution.
2. The comparison to Van Helsing scared the bejeesus out of me as this film is, without fear of contradiction. the most soulless piece of CGI-based, video game-inspired package of caca to ever deflower a movie screen and lower the IQ of its viewers (if that's possible). The Brothers Grimm is nothing like that, thank God! It's a witty, well thought-out and finely acted film.
3. I had to laugh thinking back at the criticism The Day After Tomorrow received because of its CGI wolves which were judged by film sophisticates in this thread and elsewhere as "sub-par". I guess they hadn't seen the wolf in Brothers Grimm, whose shortcomings can be excused by the fact that it's a fairy-tale wolf disguising a human being.
so would you recommend a purchase?
baracine
12-20-05, 07:33 PM
so would you recommend a purchase?
Yes, even at $33.11 CAN, which is the price on amazon.ca. Especially as an example of Terry Gilliam at his best. It has to be seen at least twice to extract all the main nuances of interpretation and story-telling - not to mention the Gilliam commentary - and it has a very high repeat factor after that. I think it's a classic.
All the characters are perfectly cast. Heath Ledger and Matt Damon's performances are superb. Even Monica Belluci, whom I consider the Whore of Babylon, is not exactly out of character as the Evil blood-drinking Queen.
Buy: