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'Brotherhood' merges unlikely pairs
 Harold John Behling
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If you were as intrigued by the imagery in the preview for "Brotherhood of the Wolf" as I was, you will enjoy the movie. It's a great example of merging the most unlikely parts: pineapple on pizza, peanut butter and jelly, caramel on apples. The best example, and most fitting to the nature of this film, is mayonaisse on french fries. "Brotherhood of the Wolf" is most definitely French (original title: "Pacte des loupes") and most definitely not for everyone.
Mysterious slayings plague the Gevaudan region of France. Desperate, the king calls upon biologist, explorer and philosopher Chevalier de Fronsac. Accompanied by Mani his Native-American blood-brother, Fronsac (played by Samuel La Bihan) sets out to investigate the deaths using his knowledge of anatomy and deductive reasoning.
"Brotherhood of the Wolf" takes us not only into the den of the beast that terrorized 18th century France (this much is based on true events), but also into the equally dangerous political climate. Full of church versus state conflicts, and examples of the class struggle and bigotry, "Brotherhood" is an atypical action/horror movie. But it still is an action horror movie, filled with devastating carnage, dizzying martial arts sequences and the thundering footfalls of the beast itself, which is cleverly kept off camera for most of the film.
By keeping the beast out of focus and out of frame, the filmmakers successfully tease the audience and build the anticipation. This approach is mirrored in the placement of the action sequences.
"Brotherhood" doesn't hop from one fist fight to the next, it takes its time. This can be irritating sometimes but for the most part the action sequences make up for the wait. Each one is beautifully filmed and choreographed. They are also simple compared to the action sequences of current films like "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and "Kiss of the Dragon" (or anything done by Jackie Chan).
Not everyone will like this movie. People who think that martial arts fighting in a 18th century European period piece is ridiculous won't be able to get past the first ten minutes. Also those who don't believe in perfect, "Jack of All Trades" heroes, will be bothered. Fronsac, who comes off as the intellectual of the group early in the movie, turns into a one-man army near its climax, taking on hordes of men armed with knives and martial arts. Also the lapses in between action sequences can be tiring. There is a lot of character development that seems out of place in this kind of action driven movie. The plot details come very slowly until near the end when it all rushes together. This inconsistent pace may throw off a few viewers.
Overall, it's the moments where this film works that redeems it as a whole. Even if you think "Brotherhood" falls victim to its shortcomings you can at least say, "Well, that idea hasn't been done yet."
Harold John Behling can be reached at: [email protected]
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