Overall Rating
 Awesome: 32.63%
Worth A Look: 47.37%
Average: 9.47%
Pretty Bad: 5.26%
Total Crap: 5.26%
6 reviews, 59 user ratings
|
|
| Brotherhood of the Wolf |
by Brian McKay
"Dangerous Liaisons, Hidden Dragon"
|
Well I'll be damned if this isn't the oddest mix of genres I've ever seen. In addition to the films named in this review's title, throw in some LAST OF THE MOHICANS and maybe even a little of THE ROAD WARRIOR, and you get a 17th century French costume drama where everybody is Kung-fu fighting - with some highly watchable results!Brotherhood of the Wolf is based on the partly historical and partly legendary "Beast of Gevaudan", a creature that killed over a hundred people in the French province of Gevaudan from 1765 to 1767, and was most commonly believed to be some kind of gigantic wolf.
Building very loosely on this premise, Brotherhood of the Wolf introduces us to two shadowy figures who have arrived in Gevaudan in the wake of the attacks, only to come upon a gang of ruffians beating up an old man and his daughter in the middle of a downpour. When one of the figures steps down off of his horse, brace yourself for one of the best stick-fighting red-assed beatdowns in movie history - the first of several amazing fight scenes to come.
The two shadowy figures are soon revealed as Grégoire de Fronsac (Samuel Le Bihan), the King's royally appointed taxidermist (I know - "A 17th century martial artist taxidermist?" Just work with me here). His companion is Mani (Mark Dacascos), a Mohican warrior who Fronsac became blood brothers with after Mani rescued him from the British during the war in New France.
Fronsac has been sent by the King to investigate the beast and determine what manner of creature it is. However, as a known libertine, he of course finds time to frequent the local whorehouse and enjoy the services of the lovely and enigmatic Sylvia (Monica Bellucci), while also romancing his newfound "true" love and local nobleman's daughter, Marianne (Émilie Dequenne). Ah yes, every man should keep a whore on the side whilst wooing "The One".
Meanwhile, Marianne's brother, Jean-François (Vincent Cassel), is none too happy with Fronsac's investigation, or with the taxidermist's undue attention toward his sister. While Fronsac deals with political machinations and chases skirt, his partner Mani lays down the law in a number of visually stunning and excellently coreographed fight scenes, each more memorable than the last. Only after he is forced to take action does Fronsac exhibit his own fighting skills, which he presumably learned from Mani. While Fronsac's moves are not as slick as Mani's, his skills are no less formidable.
Contrary to my expectations of a somewhat cheesy B-movie with some cool fight scenes, Brotherhood of the Wolf is a well-made and highly polished film with excellent production values. Even when the story occasionally gets draggy in-between the action, as it deviates into the courting of Marianne or conspiratorial intrigues, there is always something on screen to hold the attention. Whether it be an interesting bit of cinematography, the gorgeous scenery, or noteworthy performances, Brotherhood of the Wolf is sometimes slow, but never boring. And when the fist and feet start flying, it rivals some of the greatest kung-fu movies ever made. The film occasionally gets hokey with the slow-mo shots of Mani in "Mystic Native-American" mode, and the explanation of the beast, while serviceable, is a bit far-fetched. While the computer-generated beast looks good enough to be on par with the rest of the film, its motions still reveal the subtle hints of CGI fakery.
The performances are solid, and Le Bihan is both amusing and compelling in the lead role. However, it's hard for him to not have the show stolen from him by Dacascos, who prefers to let the fists and feet do the talking.
Drive-In Triple Feature Must Save the Village from the Beast (while still finding time to get laid) Picks for Brotherhood of the Wolf:
The 13th Warrior: Ah yes, John McTiernan's adaptation of Michael Crichton's retelling of Beowulf was much-maligned by the critics. I have no idea why, since it fucking rocked. Antonio Banderas plays an Arab scholar who accompanies a crew of rowdy Vikings to protect a village from fearsome man-beast creatures. A very noteworthy performance from Dennis Storhøi as "Herger", the wise-cracking and ass-kicking Northman.
Sleepy Hollow: Okay, I normally can't stand Tim Burton's overly-campy bullshit, but this is one of his better films. Johnny Depp as Ichabod Crane has got no kung-fu skillz, but still manages to hold his own against the Headless Horseman. Lovely decapitations abound, plus its got the lovely Christina Ricci and many décolletage shots of her lovely cans.Given all of the concepts, genres, and homages to other films that director Christophe Gans is trying to squeeze into the film's already bursting two and a half hours, BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF could have turned out to be a huge mess. For some reason, though, it all comes together to create one of the most intriguing films I've seen in a while. Seeing a bunch of guys getting drop-kicked to the head certainly doesn't hurt, either.
link directly to this review at http://www.efilmcritic.com/review.php?movie=5704&reviewer=258
originally posted: 11/05/02 11:44:13
![[printer]](/images/icon/printer.gif) printer-friendly format
|
 |
USA
11-Jan-2002 (R)
UK
N/A
Australia
28-Nov-2002
|
|
Articles 
subscribe to this feed![[AllPosters.com]](/images/icon/ap.gif){kind=icon}
