I was wandering around Target the other day and saw that "The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus" was out on DVD. That made me sad, because I don't think it came out in the theater. But it also made me happy, 'cause I could purchase it.
So my husband and I watched it this weekend. All I can say is that this movie is a ******* work of art. It made me sad, because Heath Ledger really was such an awesome actor. And the integration between him, Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Ferrel was done really well. You weren't just supposed to accept that suddenly, that character looks completely different, so let's all just pretend it's the same guy.
I'd love to hear what you guys thought of it. It was a bit kooky, of course, but I thought it was amazing, and I loved it.
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Love it, but I'm partial to getting high & watching the works of Terry Gilliam.
"The Rich are there to take all of the money & pay none of the taxes, the middle class is there to do all the work and pay all the taxes, and the poor are there to scare the crap out of the middle class." -George Carlin
While the visuals were fairly impressive I felt the story was a little flat. The story behind the movie was more interesting than the story within it. The devil character I felt was especially as he was a less of a devil to man and more of the Doctor's own personal devil; knowing the movie to be somewhat autobiographical he was a slight against anyone who had ever gotten in Gilliam's way. Gilliam put too much of his frustration into the movie and I feel no sympathy for him. He comes off as whiny.
Allegory wrote:
While the visuals were fairly impressive I felt the story was a little flat. The story behind the movie was more interesting than the story within it. The devil character I felt was especially as he was a less of a devil to man and more of the Doctor's own personal devil; knowing the movie to be somewhat autobiographical he was a slight against anyone who had ever gotten in Gilliam's way. Gilliam put too much of his frustration into the movie and I feel no sympathy for him. He comes off as whiny.
I....
Ok.
Having never heard any of this, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. I thought it was fantastic.
Belkira the Tulip wrote:
Having never heard any of this, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. I thought it was fantastic. 
It's just not fun for me if I haven't ruined it for you.
Edited, Jun 15th 2010 1:00pm by Allegory
Allegory wrote:
Belkira the Tulip wrote:
Having never heard any of this, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. I thought it was fantastic.
It's just not fun for me if I haven't ruined it for you.
Edited, Jun 15th 2010 1:00pm by Allegory
Well, you didn't. So there.
I wonder how awesome "Time Bandits" would be if they redid it today with all of the computer stuff they can do now.
Oh god, Time Bandits... such a terrible movie
◕ ‿‿ ◕
I feared for it, especially after Heath Ledger's death, but the way that was dealt with was quite good. I liked the movie quite a bit, it's one of my favourite movies of this year, especially so far as no other movies really stick out imo.
Gilliam has often struck me as a bit whiny at times, but that didn't really affect this movie for me.
Gilliam has often struck me as a bit whiny at times, but that didn't really affect this movie for me.
I got to thinking about this thread this morning.
I'm having a hard time seeing the devil as a slight to anyone but Parnassus (or Gilliam himself, if you want to look at it that way) considering that everything that happened to Parnassus was his own fault. He didn't have to enter into any deals with the devil, but he was a bit greedy so he entered into the first one. Then he wanted to save his daughter, so he kept playing the game, gambling with the devil.
And in the end, the devil saved the daughter, which was what Parnassus wanted anyway, and Parnassus seemed to still be immortal. I just wished that Valentina could've seen her dad in the end.
Unless I completely misunderstood the end... which is possible.
Allegory wrote:
The devil character I felt was especially as he was a less of a devil to man and more of the Doctor's own personal devil; knowing the movie to be somewhat autobiographical he was a slight against anyone who had ever gotten in Gilliam's way.
I'm having a hard time seeing the devil as a slight to anyone but Parnassus (or Gilliam himself, if you want to look at it that way) considering that everything that happened to Parnassus was his own fault. He didn't have to enter into any deals with the devil, but he was a bit greedy so he entered into the first one. Then he wanted to save his daughter, so he kept playing the game, gambling with the devil.
And in the end, the devil saved the daughter, which was what Parnassus wanted anyway, and Parnassus seemed to still be immortal. I just wished that Valentina could've seen her dad in the end.
Unless I completely misunderstood the end... which is possible.
Belkira the Tulip wrote:
I'm having a hard time seeing the devil as a slight to anyone but Parnassus (or Gilliam himself, if you want to look at it that way) considering that everything that happened to Parnassus was his own fault. He didn't have to enter into any deals with the devil, but he was a bit greedy so he entered into the first one. Then he wanted to save his daughter, so he kept playing the game, gambling with the devil.
And in the end, the devil saved the daughter, which was what Parnassus wanted anyway, and Parnassus seemed to still be immortal. I just wished that Valentina could've seen her dad in the end.
And in the end, the devil saved the daughter, which was what Parnassus wanted anyway, and Parnassus seemed to still be immortal. I just wished that Valentina could've seen her dad in the end.
But the devil revolves solely around Parnassus; the devil's very existence seems to be dependent on Parnassus. The initial premise of tricking Parnassus into gaining eternal life goes fully against what a traditional devil desires in most settings--usually to obtain one's soul. I'm not so much contending that this devil has to have the same objective, but he only makes the deal to hurt Parnassus, not to help himself in anyway. The demand for his daughter seems more legitimate, but still similar. The devil seems less interested in obtaining Parnassus' daughter and more interested in simply taking her away from him.
The feeling I got from the portrayal of the devil is a very self-centered framing. The devil isn't an evil character who is willing to use evil to obtain something he desires, rather he's just mean for the sake of hurting Parnassus. I get the feeling that this is the way Gilliam views many of the problems in his life. He didn't get that movie deal because the producers felt it wouldn't make enough money; he didn't get it because they were out to get him, and these people are all the devil.
Edited, Jun 17th 2010 5:26pm by Allegory
Allegory wrote:
But the devil revolves solely around Parnassus; the devil's very existence seems to be dependent on Parnassus.
But, really, in a movie where the devil tempts the "hero" into doing bad things, that's always how it seems, isn't it? But point taken.
Allegory wrote:
The feeling I got from the portrayal of the devil is a very self-centered framing. The devil isn't an evil character who is willing to use evil to obtain something he desires, rather he's just mean for the sake of hurting Parnassus. I get the feeling that this is the way Gilliam views many of the problems in his life. He didn't get that movie deal because the producers felt it wouldn't make enough money; he didn't get it because they were out to get him, and these people are all the devil.
Edited, Jun 17th 2010 5:26pm by Allegory
Edited, Jun 17th 2010 5:26pm by Allegory
Yeah, I can't argue with that.
I still enjoyed the movie, though. You can't take that away from me!!
There is definitely a lot to be liked in the movie, and I don't want to understate that. The imagery is gorgeous. Tony is an incredibly charismatic character who sells himself not only to those within the movie but also to those without.
Maybe I'm a negative nancy, but I suppose I tend to focus on what could have been better in a movie than what was done well. I like to think more about what should be changed than what should stay the same.
Edited, Jun 17th 2010 5:57pm by Allegory
Maybe I'm a negative nancy, but I suppose I tend to focus on what could have been better in a movie than what was done well. I like to think more about what should be changed than what should stay the same.
Edited, Jun 17th 2010 5:57pm by Allegory
I liked it. Was odd, but wasn't a total waste of time. I need to rent it again.
Allegory wrote:
There is definitely a lot to be liked in the movie, and I don't want to understate that. The imagery is gorgeous. Tony is an incredibly charismatic character who sells himself not only to those within the movie but also to those without.
Maybe I'm a negative nancy, but I suppose I tend to focus on what could have been better in a movie than what was done well. I like to think more about what should be changed than what should stay the same.
Edited, Jun 17th 2010 5:57pm by Allegory
Maybe I'm a negative nancy, but I suppose I tend to focus on what could have been better in a movie than what was done well. I like to think more about what should be changed than what should stay the same.
Edited, Jun 17th 2010 5:57pm by Allegory
I don't think that's being negative so much as just thinking about the movie, and more thinking should usually be encouraged.
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