The Brothers Polish do not try to obviously overturn accepted notions of 'weirdness' that might attend any representation of their subject matter (Siamese twins). The film opens with images of duality linked with strangeness - two girls in a cab part; a man with an iron claw gives them change, two ripped pieces of dollar sellotaped together. So already the notion of being two is linked to rupture, disrepair, disfigurement.

One of the women, Penny, a prostitute dressed and eye-lined like a teenage Goth, walks through a strange hotel that seems to exist in a suffocatingly smoky time-warp. She enters a lift guarded by a weird old codger who comes out with some incongruous comments and a barmy sense of direction. The corridor smells of stale urine. Later we discover that neighbours include a 'jive'-talking marriage counsellor-cum-evangelist called Jesus (registration no: HEY ZEUS).

The corridor is wallpapered an off-green, complementing the sickly olive beaming in the boy's bedroom. The score, on the whole the kind of thing you'd hear in any 'quality' Hollywood picture, is sustained just a little too long, and becomes a little Badalamenti-like, confirming the overall David Lynch feel which is strengthened by a later sequence in a freakshow, and a general similarity of plot and melancholy to 'The Elephant Man'; although the feeling here is more the similarly titled 'Twin Peaks'. How can the heroes seem other than weird?

A lot of people have been claiming this as one of the year's best movies. I just mustn't have got it. Of course, I sympathised with the brothers, the sexual frustration, the identity crises, the fundamental feelings of abandonment, yet also the privileged, whispered, shared private life, the idea of coming to a dive hotel to die. The development of the relationship between Penny and Blake is very sympathetic, although the character of Penny is so richly and engagingly realised, she risks making the twins seem one-dimensional (no pun intended). The cod-Freudianisms of having her psychologically compensate for an abandoned, retarded child by mothering/loving two disabled 'boys' is a little pat, as is the disjunction between her moral growth as a person, and their physical decline.

There is much that is beautiful here - the world flooded with the boys' necessarily off-centre worldview; the whole Halloween sequence; the dream sequence with the bicycles (linking Siamese twins with silent cinema for the second time this year (the other is 'Of Freaks and Men') - what's going on here?).

It's just that everything happens as you'd expect, as predictable as you'd guess a Hollywood movie about Siamese twins would be - right down to the moment when the errant mum returns to squeeze her dying son's hand, or the circus past. And maybe that's the rub, not just that Hollywood would never make a film about Siamese Twins, but that a Hollywood-like film about Siamese twins, like the score, is a little off-kilter; that Siamese twins, as much as brawny action heroes, muddled bimbos and precocious teenagers deserve the Hollywood treatment as much as anyone? I guess?

I was very excited upon hearing about this film. It sounded like a very original idea, but unfortunately lacked. The ending of the film was shockingly bad, so "hollywood" in style that it seemed like someone entirely different had written it. Michele Hicks as Penny was downright awful, my suggestion to her-stick to modeling. Her character wasn't the least bit believable and I had absolutely no sympathy. However, the film does have its good points, the cinematography at the beginning, the scene where the brothers play the country song. Certainly worth watching, perhaps your opinion will differ.

I drove sixty five miles one way to see this film and it

would have bargain at twice the distance. This film is

superbly written and acted and I see no flaws. The premise which is cojoined twins played by the Polish brothers, identical twins, is original and delivered with a poignancy that is rare. I spoke to a couple of people after the film who said they thought they would be uncomfortable with the subject and were for a couple of

minutes but then became totally involved and forgot. I

will not go into the storyline as this is a film you should enjoy as it unfolds, but I caution you to pay attention as there is alot to be appreciated in watching

the intimacy between these brothers as well as the dialogue, sometimes almost inaudible between the brothers. The film also offers analogies, puns, metaphors, and an interesting array of supporting characters. There is also alot of "hidden" humor so watch carefully. Although there is alot of sadness in the film, the overall feeling after was uplifting. This film was on my mind for days and I think it was the first thing I brought up in conversations. This is a MUST SEE for anyone that enjoys film that are not standard fare. I am

looking forward to adding it to my video collection. FOUR

STARS!!!!