Movie Review: The Brothers Grimm

The Brothers Grimm (2005) is pretty dumb.  It does have a good concept: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (Jake and Will in the movie played by Heath Ledger and Matt Damon respectively) are charlatans who stage hauntings in various German towns and then collect money for their exorcisms who meet their match when they come upon a forest where fairy tales have come to life.  With director Terry Gilliam at the helm I expected it to be fun, fantastical, and thoughtful at the very least.  Instead it was more like a bad Tim Burton film: dull, fantastical, and way-over-the-top.  In fact, in many ways it seems to rip off Burton’s Sleepy Hollow.  It has the same creepy village, the same spooky forest with moving trees, and is overwhelmed in the same way by CGI special effects that get in the way of a good story.  Damon and Ledger are good actors but aren’t really given a chance to perform amid he FX and are saddled with a hackneyed “I must learn to believe in my brother” message.  I didn’t really have high expectations for this movie but I was disappointed all the same.