The Brothers Grimm

Will and Jacob Grimm (Matt Damon and Heath Ledger), are two brothers making a living as con men in the early 1800s in French-occupied Germany. The pair have become famous by faking ghosts, ghouls, and other frightening creatures, playing in the superstitious stories of the German villagers, then, for a steep fee, defeating said terrors. This until, (bum, bum, bum!) they are arrested by the French and sent on a mission where local girls are being abducted--perhaps by a truly enchanted foe?

Will Grimm is the obnoxious ladies man, pushing around his twitchy younger brother Jacob, a scholar who studies and records the local tales, and is not quite as skeptical as his brother. Ledger's performance was my favorite, awkward and adorable, with just the right amount of ticks. Alas, having had a tragic family incident involving a cow/bean trade, Will is loath to believe in any sort of magic story. The two meet with an outcast lady trapper, Angelika (Lena Headey), who knows that the trees in the woods are more than just trees. Prepare to see snippets of fairy tales (Little Riding Hood, Rapunzel, Snow White, etc.) thrown in, although it often seems just to be to remind us of the fairy tale theme--it often adds nothing to overall story.

This movie, directed by Terry Gilliam, has a sort of "Sleepy Hollow" vibe. It's funny. And it's scary. And actually, you can probably name a few more ways they're alike if you've seen both films. Not that this is a problem. But a very easy way to describe the film. (I'm afraid I vote for Sleepy Hollow if the two are in a contest.)

The visuals look pretty good, minus a few CGI bits that glare at you from the screen. As it often goes in movies set in past centuries in Europe, everything is very muddy and a lot of the non-starring characters have bad teeth. It's not as crazy weird looking as some Gilliam things, indeed, by some standards, it might seem flat-out mainstream. But when you do have men hanging over a cauldron by very long chains, their heads in glass boxes filled with snails, you have to admit it's still not quite mainstream, visually.

The film is actually flat-out goofy at times. You'd almost think at some points it was oriented toward a younger audience, until you see some gruesome capture of a child, or the disposal of an adorable kitten in a way that no adorable kitten should be disposed of. No, as little girls seem to take the brunt of the horror in this not-really-a-horror film, this is definitely not one for the kiddies. I wouldn't have minded a bit if a few of the scary "something grotesque pops onto the screen" moments were traded in for some more clever lines.

Bottom Line: Mainly good for a giggle and some fun, if you don't mind a bit of cruel/gross visuals.