This film is stupid, stupid, STUPID... and so much fun! "Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters" is big, loud fun at it's finest that (thankfully) doesn't take itself too seriously.

Rating: 7/10 (17 January 2014)

There's something of a trend going on today in cinema. And that is gritty, violent reboots and re-tellings of old stories, whether they be fictional fairy-tales or real-world figures. Yes, over the past couple of years, audiences have been given odd reboots of old stories. Everything from dark takes on classics like "Snow White", to even silly "What If's?" featuring the likes of Abraham Lincoln... fighting vampires. (Which ended up producing quite a fun, quirky little action film, but I digress)
So I wasn't too surprised to learn that Hollywood was planning on unleashing a new take on the classic fable of "Hansel & Gretel", this time telling the story of how after escaping the witch who tried to kill them, the siblings went on a lifelong conquest to hunt other witches for profit. What I was surprised about was how much fun that film is. Yes, it's time to take a look at "Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters", a goofy, loud and very stupid action movie that is loaded floor-to-ceiling with rampant entertainment value, thankfully because it never takes itself too seriously.
We begin with a brief re-telling of the classic, with some alterations. After a young Hansel and Gretel are lead out to the woods by their father, and survive a struggle against a cruel witch inside of the infamous gingerbread-house, they are unable to find their way home, or figure out what happened to their parents. Now grown up, having assumed the roles of bounty-hunters who kill witches for payment, Hansel (Jeremy Renner) and Gretel (Gemma Arterton) find themselves in the town of Augsburg, which is being terrorized by witches that have been abducting local children. They are hired to figure out what is happening, return the children and slay the witches responsible. However, they soon realize the true threat, a witch named Muriel (Famke Janssen), may be a bigger threat than any they have ever faced, and that their journey may hold the keys to solving the leftover mysteries of their past.
The acting is a tad mixed, I will admit. Renner is a lot of fun as Hansel, but is a tad wooden on screen. Almost as if he is unsure what to do with his limited development as a character. Arterton is great, however, giving Gretel a fairy fun, complex personality and enriching her role quite a bit. Janssen is a one-dimensional villain for sure, but she seems to be having a lot of fun hamming it up during her scenes. And supporting roles by the likes of Thomas Mann and Peter Stormare are decently played.
The script by writer/director Tommy Wirkola is quite fun, albeit flawed. I cannot tell if it's the fault of the script of over-eager editing, but the film does move way too fast at times. At only 88 minutes, it really feels like the film could have used a bit more footage to give it a more organic flow. Characters are also under- written and the storyline is very predictable. However, there is a lot of fun to be had in the quirky, not-taking-itself-too- seriously tone, and the over-the-top style. (When our heroes casually toss around "f-bombs" while lopping off the heads of witches in gloriously gory sequences, you know the film is aiming to entertain first and is not taking itself too serious) There's also a surprising amount of humor here that works quite well, and gave me some good belly-laughs. (Which is somewhat unsurprising upon learning that funny-man Will Ferrell and his frequent collaborator Adam McKay are producers here.)
Wirkola's direction is a lot better than his writing, though. The film is dripping with style, giving us some very cool action sequences, a lot of great visual touches and a fantastic eye for design. (This film for me has the most iconic "Gingerbread House" I've seen in any adaptation of the story.)
And it's mainly that kinetic, stylized, over-the-top style of the film that makes it work so well. Something about this flick just clicks, despite the under-written characters and rushed pace. That fact it doesn't take itself too serious, and is full of such fun direction really makes up for the other faults, and makes this an enjoyable sit for audiences.
It's pure dumb-fun fluff at its finest. All style, jokes and action. And I appreciate films like that from time to time.
And because it is such a fun time, I give it a pretty-good 7 out of 10.