Terry Gilliam and his boundless imagination return to the Festival with a film already enshrined in cinema history as the final work of Heath Ledger. When Gilliam made the inspired decision to bring in Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell to amplify Ledger's unfinished role, a work of fantastical storytelling unexpectedly evolved into a glorious tribute to the terrific young actor. If there's a surprise here, it's in how beautifully Gilliam weaves the fantasy and the tribute together.
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus – the title smacks of fable and adventure, and the film delivers. In a sly performance full of his usual robust energy, Christopher Plummer plays a trickster showman in contemporary London, putting on acts with the aid of young Anton (the phenomenal Andrew Garfield from Boy A), his loyal friend Percy (Verne Troyer) and his beautiful daughter Valentina (Lily Cole). Their seemingly shabby shows involve antiquated tableaux that conceal the real deal: unsuspecting audience members are pulled onstage and sent through a magical mirror into a gleaming, surreal other world.
But it's a desperate game. As a young man, Parnassus made a pact with the devilish Mr. Nick (Tom Waits, sporting a debonair pencil-thin moustache), and thus began a centuries-long battle of wits and wagers in which Parnassus is granted powers – immortality and the ability to guide the imaginations of others – but at great cost to himself and risk to his daughter. When the troupe rescues Tony (Ledger) from London's streets, he joins their tottering sideshow, but he may not be who they hope he is. And now Mr. Nick is back to collect a debt.
For Gilliam fans, there are shades here of The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, The Brothers Grimm and The Fisher King. He's as uproarious a filmmaker as ever. What's new is his stunning command of digital technology to conceive worlds previously unimaginable.With his stellar cast, vivid effects and characteristic audacity, Gilliam once again proves himself a consummate storyteller.
Terry Gilliam was born in Minneapolis and emigrated to England in 1967, where he became a writer, animator and occasional performer for Monty Python's Flying Circus. Gilliam's debut feature film was
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (co-director, 75), which was followed by
Jabberwocky (76),
Time Bandits (81),
Monty Python's The Meaning of Life (co-director, 83) and
Brazil (85). His other features include
The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (89),
The Fisher King (91) which won the Toronto International Film Festival Award in 1991,
Twelve Monkeys (95),
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (98),
The Brothers Grimm (05),
Tideland (05) and
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (09).