What is it about Adrien Brody that is so attractive? He is not classically handsome. It’s the eyes. Those sad puppy eyes. In The Brothers Bloom he plays the younger brother named Bloom with Mark Ruffalo as older brother Stephen. (Strangely, they never explain why they are the Brothers Bloom and it is his first name.) The brothers are con men and have been at it since childhood. Now grown, Bloom has tired of always living “a scripted life” since Stephen comes up with all the cons and he just plays his part. Bloom has decided to leave this con man life behind, but Stephen wants him to come along for just one last job.
The mark for this con is Penelope Stamp played by Rachel Weisz. Penelope is a kooky heiress with way too much money and time on her hands. She is a quick study and can teach herself anything that catches her fancy; she plays dozens of instruments, speaks dozens of languages, and yearns for adventure. And so engaging her in their elaborate con is not a problem. The con itself has to do with an extremely rare book in a library in Prague that will be stolen, smuggled out of the country and sold to a third party for an exorbitant sum.
But of course, Bloom and Penelope become romantically attached to one another and it becomes more and more difficult to discern whether Bloom’s actions are part of the con or real life. There are lots of twists and turns and I won’t spoil it by detailing them here. The Brothers Bloom is a surprising adventure, with lots of beautiful European scenery, a fun soundtrack, solid performances all round and a nice love story. Rent or buy it now.