Rian Johnson's BRICK is one of the most creative films of the new century. So my anticipation for Johnson's follow-up film, THE BROTHERS BLOOM, was quite high. While it isn't as fresh as his previous genre-bending high-school-set noir, this con man tale is just as entertaining and even more charming. This is mainly due to a sweet double love story at its core. One between a man and a woman and the other between brothers.
Stephen (Mark Ruffalo, YOU CAN COUNT ON ME) and Bloom (Adrien Brody, THE DARJEELING LIMITED) moved from foster home to foster home throughout their childhood. Bloom was a shy kid who wished he could interact with the other children better. So Stephen writes a con for Bloom to act out and Bloom blooms. However, after years of living a lie, Bloom wants something real. Yet he has a hard time refusing his brother who lures him back into one last job — conning the rich, eccentric heiress Penelope Stamp (Rachel Weisz, THE CONSTANT GARDENER).
Stephen and Bloom, along with the silent explosives expert Bang Bang (Rinko Kikuchi, BABEL), pretend to be antique dealers. Penelope is a collector of sorts too — a collector of hobbies. Her and Bloom connect oddly after she hits him with her car. Bored with her mansion, she tags along with the trio on a cruise where their partner, The Curator (Robbie Coltrane, HARRY POTTER), reveals that they are smugglers. This excites Penelope, because for her it's an adventure. The only thing that Stephen warns Bloom not to do is fall in love, but by that point it already seems too late. But as these things go, they never go perfectly and the brothers' old mentor Diamond Dog (Maximilian Schell, JULIA) shows up to put a wrinkle in their plans.
Con flicks are all about distracting the audience so they think one thing is happening while something else is taking place. Johnson, who also wrote the script, assumes we've seen a con game flick or two and plays on the conventions well. The characters know how con games work and as Stephen says, the best con is the one where everyone gets what they want. But is Bloom getting what he wants in conning Penelope?
Given well-defined character his wonderful cast of two Oscar winners, one nominee and Mark Ruffalo make this a fun ride. Weisz has rarely been more charming. She's been in comedies before like DEFINITELY, MAYBE, but here she gets to shine and the audience falls for her along with Bloom. Brody is always good as the brooding romantic and Ruffalo should play scruffy hustlers more often. Like her role in BABEL, Kikuchi only has a few lines of dialog, but the beautiful actress still makes an impression. And one of the biggest laughs comes from her con game code name.
Johnson brings a quirkier and more carefree style to BLOOM than the harder hip feel of BRICK. But like his previous film, the dialog and characterization are first rate. Stephen has always been looking out for his brother even when Bloom didn't think so. The brothers' relationship is subtler then the love story between Bloom and Penelope, but no less touching. THE BROTHER BLOOM begins with a great early con from the brothers, narrated by the real-life king of cons Ricky Jay, and ends with the best con — one where everyone gets what they want even if they didn't know they wanted it.
Opens wide May 29
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
