Though not that obscure, The Brothers Bloom is a movie more people need to know about. Director and writer Rian Johnson's second film (his first being the cult film noir Brick), The Brothers Bloom is at first hilarious, then profound, then gripping, and finally tragically moving. Starring Adrien Brody, Mark Ruffalo, Rinko Kikuchi, and the stunning Rachel Weisz, it's about two con-men (the aforementioned brothers) in quite the love/hate relationship. The younger, Bloom played by Brody, has been living a lie his entire life and he's tired of it, playing the charming male lead in all of his brother's con's. He wants what he calls an "unwritten life" (don't we all?) and eventually agrees to one last con before he gives it up for good. That last con is on Weisz's character, Penelope, a rich recluse who is more than they ever could've realised.The Brothers Bloom is hilariously quirky with a style and comic sensibility similar to Wes Anderson's best and without the lack of substance that afflicted Anderson's last film (mind you I haven't seen Fantastic Mr. Fox). It's comedy early on is quick and dry, just the way I like it. But this is only the film's face. Underneath one finds a profound statement on not only the way we lead our lives but also the way we perceive them from afar. Is it possible to live genuinely, or are we all con-men of sorts? Is it true, as Ruffalo's character states, that "there's no such thing as an unwritten life, just a badly written one?" Definitely something to think about.
Sure it's not a perfect film. Something went a little wrong in the editing department and the pacing can be a little odd if confusing at times (before it picks up again) but for the first time in a long time, I very much disagree with most critics on this one; I quite loved The Brothers Bloom.
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