Adrien Brody Movie:

		List Price: $34.99		Label: Summit Entertainment Salesrank: 12939 Released: January 12, 2010
		Our Price: $23.99
		MPAA Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested) Media: Blu-ray

Editorial Review:
Writer-director Rian Johnson’s The Brothers Bloom has a lot going for it, like an excellent cast doing good work, fabulous locations, a sumptuous look, and some interesting ideas in a genre that’s rife with possibilities. Somehow, though, the film is a whole that’s less than the sum of its parts. We meet siblings Stephen and Bloom, the products of numerous foster homes, at ages 13 and 10, respectively, as they’re starting to develop the skills and savvy that will help them become the full-blown scam-meisters they are when we meet up with them in their thirties (with Mark Ruffalo taking over as Stephen and Adrien Brody as Bloom). It seems Bloom wants to pack it in and live "an unwritten life" free of his brother’s elaborate schemes. But Stephen, who is now accompanied by a sidekick named Bang Bang (Babel’s Rinko Kikuchi, in an amusing, mostly silent performance as what Stephen refers to as "our fifth Beatle"), convinces his younger brother to take part in one last swindle, this one targeting the filthy rich Penelope Stamp (Rachel Weisz), who lives alone in what’s described as the biggest house on the eastern seaboard. Penelope’s an oddball, to say the least, having overcome a sickly childhood and become a master hobbyist whose skills rage from origami and playing six or eight instruments to riding a unicycle while balancing two chainsaws. Posing as antiquities dealers, the brothers pull her into a scheme that takes the trio all over the world (Greece, Prague, Montenegro, St. Petersburg, Mexico). Needless to say, complications ensue. Penelope turns out to be pretty good at the con game herself; what’s more, we know from the moment Stephen warns Bloom not to fall in love with her that he’ll quickly do exactly that. For sure, The Brothers Bloom has its high points, with surreal touches and amusing moments that help counterbalance its fairly arch overall tone. But in the end, it feels as if Johnson is trying too hard, sacrificing character for cleverness, and it’s the audience--even those who enjoy and are adept at sorting through the various clues and red herrings to figure out what’s supposedly really happening--that feels conned, or at least finds it difficult to care. --Sam Graham

The Brothers Bloom [Blu-ray] Reviews:
Wierd ending and way too many holes in the plot
2009-11-14 - This movie seemed like it would be great when we first started watching it, but at the end we were left thinking WTF? It was one of the scheme-within-scheme movies, but it couldn't pull it off. Way too many critical elements in the plot were left completely unresolved. If you think it's entertaining to find loose threads in movies, then this is the one for you. I will admit that my spouse and I had fun with that aspect of it...

Could have been better
2009-11-11 - See it if you love Rachel Weisz or any of the other actors, even though they don't do much when Rachel is around. She is perfect in this movie which is why its getting 2 stars instead of 1. The first hour is magical and funny...I laughed out loud several times during it...but ultimately it doesn't end the way it feels like it should and it turns from perky/fun/awkward into depressing/confusing really really quick. The entire last act ruins the film for me but if you liked IN BRUGES, then you might as well give this a shot...

Hats off.. and on... then off again... then on again... then...
2009-11-07 - I watched this movie on a plane flight from Chicago to Portland. All in all I'd rather have slept. This film is hard to describe, because it intentionally tries (very hard) to be clever and quirky. The writer seems to have a headware fetish as people wearing hats of every conceivable kind seems to be a major objective of the film. How many can you count? All kinds of hats. Even some of the statues in background scenes have hats. Oh yes, and eyeware. Goggles, regular glasses, sun glasses, enormous binnoculars take your pick. And gloves, multiple multiple gloves and handware. It seems they must have spent half the budget on hats, glasses and gloves for the charactors. Weird budget choice. Then there's the pointless and silly explosions through out the film. Same your money and more importatnly save your time. This is a bad movie.

Beware The Brothers Bloom!
2009-10-29 - I hated this movie. Once you realize that it's all about the con, you soon understand that nothing is what it seems, so there are no real surprises. Mark Ruffalo and Adrien Brody play brothers who have no on-screen chemistry. They don't even remotely look like brothers. Ruffalo is overly confident and smug while Brody sulks around, broods and complains throughout and then, without an ounce of charm, manages to get the girl. We all know when the hero looks like Ichabod Crane, that never happens.
The girl in question is played by Rachel Weisz. We are asked to believe that she is such a horrible, inept driver, that she crashes every time she is behind the wheel and yet she manages to pull of a major con, is caught in the act and then is freed with the valuable book she has stolen hidden in her blouse. Since this is so unbelievable and improbable, we are asked to just accept it with no explanation whatsoever.
No one is very likeable, but then, from out of nowhere comes the most annoying character to ever appear in any film: Bang Bang, played by Rinko Kikuchi. She seems to be having fun with her role, but I wanted to ring her neck. Not until now, have I ever seen a movie in which one of the characters (Bang Bang) could be erased without affecting any of the scenes, the story or the outcome.
Maximilian Schell and Robbie Coltrane are tossed in the mix to add to the intentional quirkiness of the film.
When you can't relate to anyone, you don't care what happens to them
and I found the young brothers Bloom very unlikeable and it only got worse as the brothers got older.
I say you can skip it.

Quirky Melancholy Blend...
2009-10-24 - Got the movie because of the cast. Rachel Weisz, Adrien Brody, Mark Ruffalo any one of them is watchable but all three together was a must see in my book.

A story of con men brothers who grew up perfecting the con game and crafting the perfect story. Well, one brother anyway. Ruffalo writes the scripts and Brody fumbles through more and more complicated plots hating the game and detesting himself for playing it. With the promise of an end in sight they agree to one more con before parting ways.

The con involves an eccentric little rich girl (Weisz) who apparently has a stable full of the identical car because as she crashes one another is delivered in its place. After crashing said car into Bloom (Brody) she becomes intrigued by him and his story. She is a very talented self-taught woman with a thirst for adventure. This new con, new script doesn't quite end up the way it was intended to end.

Great acting. The cast must have had a blast. And this is a quirky almost whimsical film with an old fashioned feel. It reminded me of Pushing Daisies if you had an opportunity to ever watch that little television gem. Weisz has a few interesting scenes, one a little embarrassing that puts it in the "not for kids" category. (Think the diner scene in Harry and Sally but on a train.) Though kids would probably not be real interested in the slower pace of the film, so that might be a moot point.

Be warned. As charming as this campy quirky adventure is, the pervasive thick vein of melancholy almost chokes it at times. Bloom grows so embittered he is willing to chew his leg off to escape the trap he's in. Enter his brother who loves Bloom enough to write the ultimate script.