Brutal and lovely. Perfect! Its dramatic intensity will stun you!

Rating: 10/10 (25 November 2006)

I believed them on 'Front Row', on BBC Radio 4, when they said this was a tremendous 'fairy tale' for adults. They also said it was NOT in any way, shape, or form for children. They were right. It does, indeed, hearken back to the original Brothers Grimm, and the older form of fairy tale, which was violent and very intense. Contrast this with the dumbed-down nursery tales pumped out by virtually everybody else, especially Disney.
Disney fairy tale stuff is fine for 3 to 8 year-olds. And they do some great movies for adults, too. But Disney's over-sanitized cutsie-a-thons even troubled me as a child. My dad gave me the book 'Pinochio', published ca. 1900, when I was 10. It was a long, brutal, and scary story, very exciting and satisfying. Nothing like the treacle the Disney movie dished up to us. This is not to beat up Disney--- they do fine work, for what it is: morally ambiguous, maudlin, saccharine tales suitable for the uncritical. But do, do, DO understand that this movie is as far from anything Disney has ever even contemplated as possible. This is not for kids. It is for you. It is deep, serious, and as thrilling and exciting as any war movie, murder mystery, or family drama you'll ever see.
I was intrigued throughout, and uplifted and gratified by the end. Clearly, this spectacular beauty is a masterpiece! I gave it a well deserved 10 out of 10.