Director: Rian Johnson
Starring: Adrien Brody, Mark Ruffalo & Rachel Weisz
Rian Johnson’s second film after the excellent noir Brick is an enjoyable con artist film with a very likeable cast. It doesn’t hold together quite as satisfactorily as his first film but is still fun to watch and further shows that Johnson is a talent to watch.
While Rian Johnson’s debut film Brick, which successfully fuelled Dashiell Hammett style noir with a teenage cast and school setting, was released to great critical acclaim, his follow up film The Brothers Bloom has taken many years to see release. Despite having been completed in 2008, it saw a limited US release in early 2009 and now a 2010 release in the UK. Whilst such delays in the release of a film do not often bode well for a film’s quality, The Brothers Bloom proves to a very enjoyable con-artist caper. It doesn’t quite satisfy as much as Brick or feel worth the wait but it is nevertheless a likeable and satisfactory follow up to Brick.
Stephen (Ruffalo) and Bloom (Brody) are brothers who spent their youth going from foster home to foster home. Stephen looked after Bloom by constructing elaborate cons that would, whilst providing the pair with illegally gained income, give his shy brother the ability to live out various lives even if they are under the guise of performances. In the present day, Bloom has grown tired of living out the lives his brother has constructed for him and goes out on his own to live a real life but finds himself drawn back for one last, big con, involving the rich, recluse Penelope Stamp (Weisz) who collect hobbies and is drawn out from her home by the promise of adventure as part of the brother’s team unaware she is the subject of a con herself which is further troubled when Bloom finds himself drawn to Penelope and looks to protect her from Stephen.
The Brothers Bloom is an enjoyable con-artist film and like with Brick, Rian Johnson again constructs a very specific environment and atmosphere for his characters and story. Beginning with a flashback to the brothers in their youth and featuring narration from actor Ricky Jay, a familiar face in films of sleight of hand due to Jay’s performances as a magician, the tone for the film is set as con-artist film with dashes of fantasy and adventure. The rest of the film is then one that it is colourful and likeable filled with an assortment of eccentric characters and elaborate cons but one that is also filled with melancholy as Bloom mourns the loss of a real life that he’s never had, of having had no real romances as all those that he’s loved have loved a role he played rather than the real Bloom. The relationship between the brothers is a quite touching one as while Stephen may sometimes appear ruthless in his intent to con another of their money no matter the emotional harm; he nevertheless cares for his brother and provides him with a life that he believes protects him from harsher realities. The character of Penelope too is likeable and offers Bloom the chance at a real romance though it would come at the cost of the con that Stephen wishes to pull and therefore would endanger the brother’s relationship. As charming and likeable as the film is however, is does suffer slightly from too long a running time which makes the film feel slightly less breezy and enjoyable towards the end and certain twists in the plot, a requirement in any film about cons, are predictable but there is one last twist that is able to add emotional weight to the film’s finale.
Mark Ruffalo and Adrien Brody both deliver warm and enjoyable performances as the film’s titled brothers. Brody is likeable and believably naïve as the younger brother Bloom whose ideas of a real life are perhaps beyond what he expects them to be and Ruffalo, while playing the mature, experienced brother Stephen, still shows his character capable of kindness. Rachel Weisz is incredibly loveable as the bubbly Penelope whose innocence reflects Bloom’s and The Brothers Bloom features enjoyable support from Rinko Kikuchi and Robbie Coltrane as members of Stephen’s team both with their own eccentricities.
The Brothers Bloom is a thoroughly charming con-artist film with warm and likeable characters and performances throughout. There are parts of the plot that are predictable and the film runs a little too long but there are still many enjoyable twists and turns and a sense of fun that frequently allows the film to charm you.
Rating: 4/5
