The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm (1962, Smilebox Version)

Synopsis:

The true story of brothers German authors Wilhelm (Laurence Harvey, The Manchurian Candidate) and Jacob Grimm (Carl Boehm, Peeping Tom), who together made a name for themselves as the writers of popular fairy tales. The brothers’ real-life struggles are interlaced with reenactments of some of their legendary tales.

Reaction & Thoughts:

“We want a story! We want a story! We want a story!”

After scoring a huge critical and financial success with the fantasy movie Tom Thumb (1958), an adaptation of a Grimm Brothers fairy tale, producer George Pal apparently told himself, “If I can make a movie about one of the Grimm Brothers’ fairy tales, why not make one about the authors themselves?” The result was The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm, one of Pal’s most ambitious and extravagant ventures.

This is a HUGE production. It’s incredibly lavish. The Oscar-winning costumes, the opulent sets, the complex visual effects, the bombastic music score, everything reeks of spectacle — we won’t see the likes of this kind of movie event again.

The film was originally shot in the now defunct Cinerama process, which consisted of three images projected onto a single screen. It’s impossible to fully appreciate this format at home. However, the movie has been digitally restored, and the restored print looks stunning! It looks and sounds better than most modern films!

The new Blu-ray features both the widescreen edition and the so-called “Smilebox version.” I like to have choices, but I much prefer the “Smilebox version,” which attempts to replicate the look of the Cinerama experience. I felt I was watching something very special. I’m sure viewers with an HD TV set will enjoy this presentation!

As for the movie itself, I liked the fairy tales best: “The Dancing Princess” (starring Russ Tamblyn, Yvette Mimieux, Jim Backus, Beulah Bondi), “The Cobbler and the Elves” (starring Laurence Harvey) and “The Singing Bone” (starring Martita Hunt, Terry-Thomas, Buddy Hackett). Producer Pal directed the fantasy sequences, while director Henry Levin (Journey to the Center of the Earth) helmed the rest of the movie.

It also contains a few musical numbers. Songwriter Bob Merrill (of Mambo Italiano fame) wrote five songs specifically for the movie, including the title tune — Merrill wrote the lyrics, while Leigh Harline (Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Pinocchio) wrote the music. Furthermore, in one of my favorite scenes, actors Tamblyn and Mimieux perform a lovely choreographed gypsy dance, a real treat for ballet fans.

Conclusions & Final Thoughts:

The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm is a nice family-oriented movie. The grand production does have a few drawbacks, namely the film’s excessive length. But this is a visual feast, specifically the restored version. Like the classic 1963 western How the West Was Won, another Cinerama movie, The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm went through a lengthy restoration process and now looks like a brand-new film. Recommended. Color, 135 minutes, Rated G.

Theatrical Trailer: