Surprisingly incoherent and boring

As Good As It Gets

Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

"The Films of the Brothers Quay" is a incredible collection shorts, and it was my very first contact with the work of this Stephen and Timothy Quay, two animators heavily influenced by Jan Svankmajer( In fact, the first film included in this collection, "The Cabinet of Jan Svankmajer" is an exquisite homage to that Czech animator) However, as this collection of shorts shows, the works made by the Quay Brothers quickly developed their own style, being lyrical and haunting at the same time.From the eerie beauty of "Street of Cocodriles" to the whimsical, dream-like "Stille Nacht" shorts ("Dramolet", "Are we Still Married?" "Tales From Vienna Woods" and "Can't Go Wrong Without You") each one of the works included in this selection shows an incredible artistic quality, filled with intense poetry and unforgettable images.I highly recommend "The Films of the Brothers Quay". The ten shorts included here are each one a triumph of its own, and it shows how artistic and beautiful non-mainstream animation could be.10/10

I first saw the works of these brothers in 1990. I thought there style of animation was so different then what I had seen before. Although these twin brother directors are American you could not see it in there work. It looked very eastern European, as if it had come out of some Soviet block TV series. While the short films on this DVD make little sense or follow any story line, there are visually fascinating to look at. Some times the imagery is disturbing to look at. If dolls had nightmares this is what they might look like. I can't say I liked their work, but I do feel it is ground breaking visually interesting and creative. This is not for those with a passing fancy in stop-motion animation.

I appreciate the high quality surreal animation, but was otherwise disappointed by this. Nearly all of the imagery comes from Jan Svankmajor, without Svankmajor's wit, whimsy, and story telling abilities. "Street Of The Crocodiles, which I had heard...(read more)...(read more) so much about, was beautiful and ephemeral, it just didn't touch on any new nerves for me. However those who enjoy the more abstract side of animation may find this right up their alley, but if your looking for macabre, literate, Rube Goldbergian animation with storytelling to match it's visual lushness, I would try some "an Svankmajor short films, otherwise this is all you.

The Quays are American-born identical twin animators who work out of London but whose work has a strong Eastern European flavor. I first came across their work one late night on a PBS station while channel surfing. It took about three seconds to realize I was watching something that was an extraordinary, one-of-a-kind experience. "Street of Crocodiles" was a strange epic in miniature, depicting a subterranean world where wooden dolls are brought to life through impossibly graceful stop-motion animation. In it, a silent man explores this enchanting but virtually unknowable place of brownish shop interiors and inanimate objects set into symbolic motion through the wonders of reverse time lapse photography. This Kafkaesque type of journey is typical of the Quays' work. Oftentimes their art seems to be a what a visualization of the subconscious would look like--and oftentimes it's just as hard to decipher.This collection is so valuable because for so long the Quay Brothers have been under-represented on video. Another gem included here is "The Cabinet of Jan Svankmajer", named after the Czech animator who is their biggest influence ("Alice", his fabulist revision of the Wonderland story, is also not to be missed). "Cabinet", a parable of a child's education, is more lighthearted than most of their work and is filled with some of the brothers' most sumptuous visual poetry. "Rehearsals for Extinct Anatomies" and their pieces on painting and opera are also great. Not for everyone, but adventurous lovers of film, animation and the avant-garde should not miss out on the bizarre and beautiful world of the Quay Brothers. And with this comprehensive collection available, there's no reason not to.