BROTHERHOOD
OF THE WOLF ($27) aka LE PACTE DES LOUPS is an incredible
motion picture experience that is tough to pigeonhole. While watching BROTHERHOOD
OF THE WOLF I couldn't really assign this French import to any
particular genre. I had to ask myself, is it a supernatural thriller? A
Mystery? A Swashbuckler? Perhaps it is an action-adventure movie? Maybe it
is a historic romance? Or could it be a martial arts movie? By the end of
the film, I came to the conclusion that BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF is
all of the above. While the film's genre isn't particularly clear, its
breathtaking execution guarantees that BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF is
the kind of movie that is certain to achieve classic status. Director
Christophe Gans marvelously stages the action (with the help of a Hong
Kong fight coordinator), plus BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF features
glorious cinematography and a meticulous production design that brings the
story to wondrous life.
Set
in 18th century France, BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF tells the story of
a beast that is mutilating and killing the woman and children in small
country province. The King dispatches Grégoire de Fronsac (Samuel Le
Bihan) to investigate ,along with his Indian blood brother Mani (Mark
Dacascos), whom has come to France from the Americas. Although French
soldiers have already been sent into the province to kill the beast, few
have even glimpsed it, and those that have, have found the creature
completely unstoppable by conventional means. Fronsac's investigation
eventually leads him in unexpected directions and into the midst of a
political conspiracy whose scope defies belief. To say any more about the
plot of BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF would do a great disservice to
those who have yet to experience this unique and wonderful film. The cast
of BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF also features Vincent Cassel, Émilie
Dequenne, Monica Bellucci, Jérémie Rénier, Jean Yanne, Jean-François
Stévenin and Jacques Perrin.
Universal
Studios Home Video has made BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF available on
DVD in a 2.35:1 wide screen presentation that features the anamorphic
enhancement for 16:9 displays. In a nutshell, the transfer is stunning.
The image is sharp and highly detailed, which shows off the beauty of Dan
Laustsen's impeccable cinematography and the intricate details of the
Guy-Claude François' production design. Even low light and firelight
sequences look extraordinary. Colors are incredibly vivid, so much so that
they straddle the line of becoming over saturated. Fortunately, the colors
are reproduced cleanly, without any real smearing of the most intense
hues- particularly the hot crimsons and orange reds. Blacks are
marvelously pure and velvety, whites are clean ands crisp, plus the film's
contrast is very smooth. In addition, I should note that BROTHERHOOD OF
THE WOLF is a rather dark movie, but it rendered here with impressive
shadow detail and no signs of murkiness. Dual layer authoring betrays nary
a digital compression artifact.
BROTHERHOOD
OF THE WOLF is presented with both the original French language and a
dubbed English soundtrack in Dolby Digital 5.1. Those who hate reading
subtitles will gravitate towards the English dub, but let me warn you the
French 5.1 channel mix is far more impressive. In fact, the French mix is
as aggressive as the most overblown American action movie, with the
English dub sounding like a very poor relation. The sound mix creates a
great sense of space for all of the film's various environments; in
addition, there is excellent surround deployment and effortless panning of
sound effects between channels. Dialogue reproduction seemed very good to
my ear, although since I do not speak French, I am not in a position to
judge the intelligibility of the language. The bass channel is thunderous,
ground shaking and incredible for a movie set in 18th century France.
Subtitles are provided on the DVD in English and Spanish.
Full
motion video, animation and sound serve to enhance the DVD’s interactive
menus. Through the menus, one has access to the standard scene selection
and set up features, as well as some supplemental features. Director
Christophe Gans is on hand to introduce and discuss a series of deleted
scenes, which were removed for reasons of pacing or because the overall
impact of the film was better served by their absence. The deleted scenes
and the director introductions run approximately forty minutes. Production
notes, a theatrical trailer and cast & crew biographies/filmographies
close out the supplements.
BROTHERHOOD
OF THE WOLF is an incredible piece of film entertainment. I was
thoroughly entertained by the film's unique mix of genres, in addition to
being floored by the movie's beautiful cinematography and impeccable
production design. Universal's DVD edition of the movie looks and sounds
spectacular (as long as you stick with the original French language track)
making this a must have DVD for fans of the various genres, as well as
those looking for the latest show off disc to feed their home theater
systems. If this review has sparked you curiosity, you can't go wrong by
picking up a copy of BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF on DVD.
BROTHERHOOD
OF THE WOLF ($27) aka LE PACTE DES LOUPS is an incredible
motion picture experience that is tough to pigeonhole. While watching BROTHERHOOD
OF THE WOLF I couldn't really assign this French import to any
particular genre. I had to ask myself, is it a supernatural thriller? A
Mystery? A Swashbuckler? Perhaps it is an action-adventure movie? Maybe it
is a historic romance? Or could it be a martial arts movie? By the end of
the film, I came to the conclusion that BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF is
all of the above. While the film's genre isn't particularly clear, its
breathtaking execution guarantees that BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF is
the kind of movie that is certain to achieve classic status. Director
Christophe Gans marvelously stages the action (with the help of a Hong
Kong fight coordinator), plus BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF features
glorious cinematography and a meticulous production design that brings the
story to wondrous life.
Set
in 18th century France, BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF tells the story of
a beast that is mutilating and killing the woman and children in small
country province. The King dispatches Grégoire de Fronsac (Samuel Le
Bihan) to investigate ,along with his Indian blood brother Mani (Mark
Dacascos), whom has come to France from the Americas. Although French
soldiers have already been sent into the province to kill the beast, few
have even glimpsed it, and those that have, have found the creature
completely unstoppable by conventional means. Fronsac's investigation
eventually leads him in unexpected directions and into the midst of a
political conspiracy whose scope defies belief. To say any more about the
plot of BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF would do a great disservice to
those who have yet to experience this unique and wonderful film. The cast
of BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF also features Vincent Cassel, Émilie
Dequenne, Monica Bellucci, Jérémie Rénier, Jean Yanne, Jean-François
Stévenin and Jacques Perrin.
Universal
Studios Home Video has made BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF available on
DVD in a 2.35:1 wide screen presentation that features the anamorphic
enhancement for 16:9 displays. In a nutshell, the transfer is stunning.
The image is sharp and highly detailed, which shows off the beauty of Dan
Laustsen's impeccable cinematography and the intricate details of the
Guy-Claude François' production design. Even low light and firelight
sequences look extraordinary. Colors are incredibly vivid, so much so that
they straddle the line of becoming over saturated. Fortunately, the colors
are reproduced cleanly, without any real smearing of the most intense
hues- particularly the hot crimsons and orange reds. Blacks are
marvelously pure and velvety, whites are clean ands crisp, plus the film's
contrast is very smooth. In addition, I should note that BROTHERHOOD OF
THE WOLF is a rather dark movie, but it rendered here with impressive
shadow detail and no signs of murkiness. Dual layer authoring betrays nary
a digital compression artifact.
BROTHERHOOD
OF THE WOLF is presented with both the original French language and a
dubbed English soundtrack in Dolby Digital 5.1. Those who hate reading
subtitles will gravitate towards the English dub, but let me warn you the
French 5.1 channel mix is far more impressive. In fact, the French mix is
as aggressive as the most overblown American action movie, with the
English dub sounding like a very poor relation. The sound mix creates a
great sense of space for all of the film's various environments; in
addition, there is excellent surround deployment and effortless panning of
sound effects between channels. Dialogue reproduction seemed very good to
my ear, although since I do not speak French, I am not in a position to
judge the intelligibility of the language. The bass channel is thunderous,
ground shaking and incredible for a movie set in 18th century France.
Subtitles are provided on the DVD in English and Spanish.
Full
motion video, animation and sound serve to enhance the DVD’s interactive
menus. Through the menus, one has access to the standard scene selection
and set up features, as well as some supplemental features. Director
Christophe Gans is on hand to introduce and discuss a series of deleted
scenes, which were removed for reasons of pacing or because the overall
impact of the film was better served by their absence. The deleted scenes
and the director introductions run approximately forty minutes. Production
notes, a theatrical trailer and cast & crew biographies/filmographies
close out the supplements.
BROTHERHOOD
OF THE WOLF is an incredible piece of film entertainment. I was
thoroughly entertained by the film's unique mix of genres, in addition to
being floored by the movie's beautiful cinematography and impeccable
production design. Universal's DVD edition of the movie looks and sounds
spectacular (as long as you stick with the original French language track)
making this a must have DVD for fans of the various genres, as well as
those looking for the latest show off disc to feed their home theater
systems. If this review has sparked you curiosity, you can't go wrong by
picking up a copy of BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF on DVD.
