Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters

Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters is an action movie infused with a touch of horror, humour and of course the lovely Gemma Arterton and talented Jeremy Renner who successfully take children's classic, Hansel & Grete to a totally new level. Even though you may be cringing at this unofficial sequel to the Grimm Brother's original tale, the reason why this movie works is that it doesn't take itself too seriously. It's filled with clichés, over the top action scenes, comedy and some really bloody gore that definitely does not make this a children's tale. It's just a fun movie from start to finish about two siblings who take on the world of witches as witch hunters.

The story of Hansel & Gretel is set around 20 years after the original tale which sees a fully grown Hansel (Jeremy Renner) and Gretel (Gemma Arterton) kicking witch butt. Although they originally survived the encounter with a witch as children, their parents were not so lucky and since then, they have vowed to kill witches across Europe. After a short introduction to the characters, the siblings are called to a town to help them kill their witch plague and also to prevent any more children being stolen by witches.

However as they progress in their mission, they soon discover that an ancient and powerful witch called Muriel (Famke Janssen) is behind the plot and with several guns and tricks up their sleeves, Hansel and Gretel have waged war on this coven of witches. From here, Hansel & Gretel becomes an action packed rollercoaster ride as we see these two heroes take on a variety of witches and ending them in some very gruesome ways. Both actors play the grim or is that Grimm hero perfectly with the shoot first and ask questions later attitude.

All the actors in the film play their characters perfectly with as much over the top acting as they can muster, especially Peter Stormare who plays the local Sheriff in the town and cannot stand that Hansel and Gretel have stolen his limelight. There's also a couple of great twists in the film such as a romance between Hansel and Mina (Pihla Viitala), a strange women who seems to know a lot about witches and why Gretel is so powerful. It's definitely a great setup and a fun film to watch over and over again.

Video, Audio & Special Features

Video and audio quality is exceptional on Blu-ray that almost makes the movie appear like a comic book with its over the top action scenes, especially the crystal clear video quality. It's also a movie that must be heard through surround sound to enhance the film.

There's also a couple of special features that include a documentary about reinventing Hansel & Gretel, another featurette about The Witching Hours and the history of witches plus Meet Edward the Troll, a short segment about the very cool troll in the movie. It should also be noted that this version of Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters is the extended cut of the movie which is a little longer and also comes with the DVD version of the film.
 

Final Thoughts?

Overall, Hansel & Gretel is oozing with fun and action that definitely puts a unique and entertaining spin on the Grimm Brother's original Hansel & Gretel classic.

Recommended!