Directed by: Rian Johnson
Starring: Adrien Brody, Robbie Coltrane, Rinku Kikuchi, Mark Ruffalo, Maximilian Schell, Rachel Weisz
Rating: PG-13

Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo in The Brothers Bloom.(Courtesy photo)

Most con/heist movies are ultimately doomed to fail. They spend the majority of the movie raising expectations to unreachable levels while inevitably muddying our ability to trust anyone involved—including the filmmaker. By the time we reach the final revelations, they’re usually either insufficient (Confidence), too twisty (Heist), or too ridiculous to embrace (The Game).

Many talented filmmakers have tried their hands at con/heist movies. Few have succeeded. The latest entrant is Rian Johnson, director of the 2005 sleeper Brick. His second feature film, The Brothers Bloom, isn’t so much a con movie as a con-movie-lover’s movie. Boy, does Johnson ever reel us in with his collection of endearing oddballs and a tone that’s somehow tipsy and morose at the same time. It’s an hour of movie heaven, followed by an hour of … a really good try.

It’s up to each viewer to decide how forgiving he or she will be of the ending. I suspect I’ll be more forgiving with each additional viewing. And I will be seeing it again. Johnson may not have made a complete great film yet, but his first two tries are a promising start.

Mark Ruffalo and Adrien Brody are Stephen and Bloom, orphaned brothers who have made their way through life as expert con men. Stephen is the mastermind. Bloom is the cipher, able to take on any role Stephen crafts for him. Since he’s spent most of his life playing other characters, Bloom feels he has no personality of his own. Stephen ropes him in for one last job: conning Penelope (Rachel Weisz), a rich young woman who barely sets foot outside her mansion. As Bloom begins his seduction of Penelope, he finds her to be unlike any of the other women he has conned. She takes to their con like an excited 10-year-old, turning it into a true adventure.

As Stephen, Bloom, and their enigmatic explosives expert, Bang Bang (Rinku Kikuchi), lure Penelope across Eastern Europe, they run into shady characters like the Belgian (Robbie Coltrane) and the Diamond Dog (Maximilian Schell). Bloom finds Penelope irresistible, which only makes him more tortured. He knows at the end he must betray her. But if he tells her the truth he’ll have to betray the brother who has taken care of him his whole life.

If only it were that simple. The problem Johnson faces is getting too clever and too labyrinthine for his own good. Like many a worthy con movie before it, The Brothers Bloom slips over the double-cross perimeter, twisting back on itself so many times that we’re not sure what we even want to happen by the end. Luckily we’re engaged enough by the love story to go with it, but not enough to completely forgive Johnson for leading us astray. So the payoff doesn’t arrive at the end. In fact, the end seems to come and go and another, less well-crafted movie seems to begin. Johnson might have been better off to wrap it up at the first natural stopping point, and allow us to revel in all of the delightful, unexpected moments before it.

Brody is the unassailable leader in wounded sweetness. He has the elastic face of a silent French comedian and the presence of a leading man. Brody is sensational as a man certain he’s unworthy of the adoration his performances receive. It’s a shame Johnson couldn’t chart a cleaner course for Bloom’s arc.

Mark Ruffalo is almost as good in a part that isn’t as rich. It’s the harder role, in fact, and though Ruffalo occasionally struggles to stir up the ringmaster’s bravado, he plays the con man with a deftly muted touch.

Rachel Weisz is an absolute joy as the wide-eyed Penelope. The character is a memorable creation, and Weisz manages to play her adorable naïveté without succumbing to the cutes. Rinko Kikuchi (Babel) also handles a great character nicely. Her Bang Bang mostly communicates via snaps and thumbs-ups, but Kikuchi makes sure she isn’t just a cartoon character. One of my favorite details: these two women become the most unlikely of friends.

When a con/heist movie pulls off its ending, the thrill can exceed almost any other kind of movie. But the cost of coming up short is equally diminishing. With his sly, astute take on high school film noir in Brick, Johnson looked to be a true original. The Brothers Bloom is surprisingly familiar in feel to a Wes Anderson film—the same deadpan whimsy, the same obsessive attention to design detail. Johnson even gives a visual nod to Anderson’s Rushmore, and included narration by magician Ricky Jay that necessarily evokes PT Anderson’s Magnolia.

As much as I enjoyed this film, I hope Johnson stakes out more original territory in his next go-round. That said, I wouldn’t miss it for anything. As imperfect as it is, The Brothers Bloom is a very appealing alternative to the noise wall of summer.

Alex Manugian lives in Sherman Oaks, Calif. He grew up in Groton and has reviewed movies for Harvard readers for many years.