The Brothers Bloom
Rian Johnson

The story: Brothers Stephen (Mark Ruffalo) and Bloom (Adrien Brody) are con men who are aided and abetted in their schemes by the laconic and capable Bang Bang (Rinko Kikuchi). They set their sights on the wealthy Penelope Stamp (Rachel Weisz) for their last job, but things get complicated when Bloom falls for her.

This is quite a line-up of actors assembled here. They are not your typical blockbuster A-listers but instead, have won critical acclaim for memorable roles in feted films.
Adrien Brody won the Best Actor Oscar for the titular role of Jewish-Polish musician Wladyslaw Szpilman in Roman Polanski’s World War II drama The Pianist (2002).
Rachel Weisz won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress as an activist who uncovers a pharmaceutical conspiracy in the political thriller The Constant Gardener (2005).
Mark Ruffalo won the New Generation Award from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association for his portrayal of the ne’er-do-well brother in the family drama You Can Count On Me (2000).
Rinko Kikuchi was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her turn as an alienated deaf teenager in the ensemble drama Babel (2006).
Inevitably, this creates certain expectations even before one steps inside the cineplex. It is a pity then that writer-director Rian Johnson’s second feature after the well-received teen crime drama Brick (2005) never quite pulls it together.
The elaborate con at the heart of the film is less than compelling and invites too many questions of the “Why?” and “How come?” variety.
Johnson’s ambitious attempt to craft a whimsical crime caper/romance anchored by the fraternal ties that bind and suffocate is let down by the lackadaisical pacing, uneven tone and the weak story.
Still, there are some pleasures to be had in observing Brody’s hooded eyes and sad-sack face and watching Ruffalo playing against type as the roguish elder brother. Weisz also raises some smiles as the awkward and eccentric heiress.
Kikuchi is mildly amusing as the enigmatic Bang Bang, but she will need to brush up on her English if she is to have a viable career in Hollywood that goes beyond niche roles.
As the film keeps telling us, in a perfect con, everyone gets what he wants. The Brothers Bloom draws you in with an intriguing set-up and a promising cast, but in the end, it is a con that turns out to be far from perfect.
(ST)