Monday, January 11, 2010

The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus (2009)

I surprisingly enjoyed this film. I walked into it kind of skeptical. I heard good things, but part of me didn't want to go in with too high expectations, because I wasn't able to finish Gilliam's previous film Tideland, and there was a lot of hype in regards to Heath Ledger's performance.
Imaginarium, like all of Gilliam's films, weights heavily on fantasy spectacle; it is done very well. The viewer is given the impression that the travelling Parnassus and co. are in a middle-world era, when they are actually in modern day London. Being thrown off like this was great, and Gilliam only at first subtly let's the audience members know that it's current year.
The story is laid out very well. The idea of capturing 5 souls for the devil to save his daughter's life is really cool. Tom Waits as the devil is also magnificent. He brings charisma to each of his scenes, and goes into character completely every time.
My favourite scene is the tango between the devil and Parnassus' daughter because it's both eerie, and visually stunning.
I also really enjoyed the visual elements that are in the same vein as Gilliam's work as a graphic designer during Monty Python. The throw back with people blowing up like balloons was done well.
My favourite "Tony" character was Jude Law.
I can't think of anything that disagreed with me in this film, or that I found was weak. I say this film is worth checking out, and definitely on the big screen.

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