The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

[PeteJ]

Heath Ledger's final film, directed by Terry Gilliam, is looking pretty bloody crazy! But crazy in the best possible way

Trailer - http://www.traileraddict.com/trailer...tional-trailer

Out in October.

[funkydan]

Yeah I'm looking forward to seeing this

[dvdmike]

I love that Heath's friends helped finish it

[spagmasterswift]

Really enjoyed this film.

It suffers from the Ledger death situation for me though, its simply not a star driven vehicle (as I had been lead to believe by the media and all that hype), but more of an ensemble piece with strong performances from pretty much everybody. Yet I couldn't help watching it waiting for Ledger to turn in something amazing (especially after his role in Batman) which sadly was not to be. Obviously he didn't get the chance to play the more meaty parts of his character which is taken on by Depp, Law and Farrell respectively which works very well in the context of the films story, yet made the character's development a little disjointed. That wouldn't have been too much of a problem had this development not been integral to the films plot. 'Supermodel' Lily Cole was surprisingly good as the child-like daughter of Dr Parnassus as was Andrew Garfield, especially in a scene where he cruelly teases Ledger's character with his tricks. Both Plummer and Waits were superb and the moments they are together were for me some of the films best. The London locations were all very well chosen and the spectacle that awaits on the other side of the Imaginarium's mirror a surreal joy despite an over-reliance on CGI - a must see at the cinema if you can find one showing it. For me the films strength lies in what it leaves you with. The majority of the tale that is told is fluffy, light and comic while the darker 'truth' after the credits have rolled sneaks up on you and begs you to go back for another look.

[rossman]

aargh they flipped the lights at my local cinema and i didn't catch the end of the credits. please tell me what happen!

loved the film

ross

[spagmasterswift]

aargh they flipped the lights at my local cinema and i didn't catch the end of the credits. please tell me what happen!

Well when the credits ended

->Open Spoiler<-

I left the cinema and discussed the film with my girlfriend, we talked about how the story was all told from the point of view of Doctor Parnassus and the way he saw characters shaped the way in which they appeared in the film (his innocent daughter physically doll-like, her potential suitor childish and awkward, etc). That lead to the story being also created by him and what that meant, beyond Gilliam's obvious feeling that his work is out of time and there is not an audience for him anymore. When we see the old man clearly now in reality at the films conclusion it made us look back over the events of the film and ponder what had actually happened during his life. For me he was a father scared of losing his little girl to womanhood, backed the wrong suitor, had problems with drink and gambling and ended up lost and alone.

[rossman]

oh i see!!

I misunderstood but yeah,

->Open Spoiler<-

agreed, its surely referencing his well documented ups and downs with the devilish film industry

[spagmasterswift]

Could be! I hear that Tony's character is meant to be a dig at

->Open Spoiler<-

Tony Blair

...

On a side note I thought this was pretty interesting...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/markkermode/2009/08/the_pirate_of_cropredy.html

[dvdmike]

Lilly Cole .....................Yummy