Starring:
Guy Pearce, Jean-Claude Dreyfus, Phillippine Leroy-Beaulieu and Freddie Highmore

Director:
Jean-Jacques Annaud

Running Time:
109 mins

• Magnificent cinematography
• A good performance from Guy Pearce
• The majestic tigers
• The tiger cubs are so cute

• The rest of the human cast don't have much to do but serve to advance the story
• A bit sugary sweet in places

"You remember me, don't you"

Aidan McRory

Two tiger cubs are taken from their mother in Southeast Asia to spend the first year of their lives in captivity. On is named Kumal and forced to perform in a circus. The other is named Sangha by the son of French Administrator of the Region and is kept as a pet, but he is offered to the local Prince as a gift and trained as a fighting animal. As the two brothers live their separate lives, destiny will bring them back together but it won't be in the best of circumstances.

A movie with hardly any dialogue and were two animals are the real stars might not seem like the most exciting premise but this is a whimsical tale that with lift the hearts of everyone.

From director Jean-Jacque Annaud, the man behind the critically acclaimed "The Bear", comes a story told from the point of view of two magnificent tigers as their world is torn apart by the intrusion of man into their environment. Set in the early 20th Century, the tale takes place when hunting was a so-called civilised obsession and the old world was a treasure trove for western explorers to be exploited.

Guy Pearce plays a quintessential character from the time in explorer and hunter extraordinaire Aidan McRory. He is a writer and a scholar who lives for high adventure and the chance to make some money. Pearce plays the character effortlessly and the script lets the role grow as the story progresses. As he sees the repercussions of his actions, he soon realises that his life might not be as great as he portrays himself in his popular novels. The rest of the cast are really none existent, quite faceless characters that only really appear to drive the story forward.

The stars of the show are the tigers. These true kings of the jungle are truly majestic. You witness their growth from unbelievably cute cubs to fully-grown jungle cats, masters of their domain and top of the predatory food chain. The film then shows some of the travesties of man during that time, as both of the animals have their time in different kinds of captivity but both of them share similar cruel treatment.

Jean-Jacque Annaud and his cinematographer Jean-Marie Dreujou photograph the animals and the glorious Southeast Asian jungle beautifully. A combination of special effects and expert animal training make the story a believeable adventure, as the tiger engulf the screen with all their majesty. The sheer patience of the filmmakers must have being extraordinary as they big and little cats provide most of the story and the action of the movie.

Two Brothers is slightly sugary sweet in places, especially during the ending and the human characters are very underdeveloped but this is still a very good piece of family entertainment. By the time the end credit role you will have fallen in love with these magnificent animals and want to phone the WWF to pledge that monthly donation the TV adverts are always clamouring for.

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