A film that can't decide on its genre - and it's so good, it doesn't need to.

I am firmly convinced that Rian Johnson’s films are set in another world. In this world, one very much like our own, people struggle, love, fight and die just like we do. The difference is that the toils of life are faced in an immaculate suit and with a glass of whisky; every sentence is delivered with poetic rhythm and laconic wit, whilst a lit match can burn down a building with its sheer sexual significance. This powerful and all-pervasive sense of cool began with Brick and continues with The Brothers Bloom, an ultra-slick movie that, like the perfect con, dazzles you with details and misdirection before taking the floor from under you with the payoff.

Most movies in this vein seek to wrong-foot the viewer by playing with characters and their motivation – it is quite common to suspect anybody of harbouring ulterior motives as soon as they appear in frame – but very few achieve this sleight-of-hand by playing with genre itself. Clearly buoyed by Brick’s impressive juxtaposition of teenage high school angst and hard-boiled gumshoe noir, Johnson uses his gift of genre-blending to toy with the viewer, leaping from one style to the next, confounding expectations without losing the faintest shred of coherence. The film begins with a narrated introduction to the lives of the protagonists that is reminiscent of a fairy-tale: the narrator tells the story of the early years of the eponymous brothers in verse, as we watch two besuited, outcast children ‘smoke’ pixie-sticks and plan their first con. From this touching and dream-like prologue, the director hurls the viewer into a scene of high drama and violence at a pace which is maintained until the closing credits.

The onslaught is relentless: horror becomes action, comedy becomes tragedy and pantomime becomes drama. The styles explored by the film mirror the twists and turns taken by the characters, subtly reinforcing the building momentum that culminates in the explosive final scenes.

"The Brothers Bloom truly is a visit to another world. A world of smart-talking flawed diamonds and deeply sinister forces of villainy"

As well as playing with genre, the film plays with the media itself: sound effects and onscreen images collide in creative and unexpected ways while setups are introduced and the payoff delayed until the audience has all but forgotten its genesis. Every attempt is made to pull the viewer into this rich and fascinating world while thwarting any attempt to second-guess the film’s direction. Humour is used to excellent effect, simultaneously diffusing the tension whilst hinting at something darker. At the height of a serious scene there was a hard cut to a short segment on a beach that had me laughing out loud and clapping my hands, before dumping me back into the tense and emotional discussion. It’s funny and unsettling, a powerful use of humour and the surreal to ensure that the audience can never quite relax as long as the story is being told.

From any other director, the plot would be standard fare – conmen go their separate ways before coming together for one last job and facing its inevitable complications – but in the hands of Johnson it becomes a deeply involving story. The characters are beautifully fleshed out. Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo are on top form as the con-artist brothers, quick-witted and perfectly dressed, Rachel Weisz excels as the sad and enigmatic target of the final con, and Rinko Kikuchi steals every scene that she is in as the silent, unflappable ‘Bang-Bang’. With this role I am firmly convinced that Johnson has stumbled across the coolest character in modern fiction. Bang-Bang is like a mute Batman with an explosives fetish: always prepared in any given situation and totally unshakable, she is far and away the main source for the film’s blackest humour- despite having the fewest lines, Kikuchi takes the role and makes it as deep and well-developed as any other in the movie.

The Brothers Bloom truly is a visit to another world. A world of smart-talking flawed diamonds and deeply sinister forces of villainy. Rian Johnson has taken the typical con-movie set-up and framed it with such panache and subversive flair that I defy anyone to watch this DVD without feeling thrilled and moved in equal measure. Once you’re done with the main show, there is a generous wealth of extras: featurettes, making-of pieces , deleted scenes and the like. If you’re a fan of con-movies, buddy movies, dramas, comedies, romances or tragedies, you’d be making a great mistake in not picking this up.

Director: Rian Johnson
Writer: Rian Johnson
Starring: Adrien Brody, Mark Ruffalo, Rachel Weisz, Rinko Kikuchi

The Brothers Bloom is released in the UK on October 4th, 2010.

IF YOU ENJOYED THIS ARTICLE, PLEASE HELP SUPPORT OUR SITE, AT NO COST WITH ONE CLICK ON THE FACEBOOK 'LIKE' BUTTON BELOW: