AMG Review of Brothers Grimm [Soundtrack]

James Christopher Monger
All Music Guide

Director Terry Gilliam's update of the Brothers Grimm legend casts the two siblings as a pair of self-proclaimed "Ghostbusters" who trick villagers out of their hard-earned money. Gilliam, who intended to have Bosnian folk-rock legend Goran Bregovic score the film, opted instead for the more mainstream style -- probably at the studio's behest -- of Italian composer Dario Marianelli (#Pride and Prejudice, #V for Vendetta). The resulting score is competent, tense, atmospheric, and instantly unmemorable. Taut strings, obligatory female soloists, and pounding percussion keep the majority of Marianelli's better ideas from ever surfacing. One wishes that Gilliam, a true maverick whose failures are as legendary as his triumphs, would have left the safe route for the Michael Bay's of the film world and gone with Bregovic.