TERRY GILLIAM
Bil’s rating (out of 5): BBBB
United Kingdom, 1985. Embassy International Pictures. Screenplay by Terry Gilliam, Tom Stoppard, Charles McKeown. Cinematography by Roger Pratt. Produced by Arnon Milchan. Music by Michael Kamen. Production Design by Norman Garwood. Costume Design by James Acheson. Film Editing by Julian Doyle. Podcasts: My Criterions.
Terry Gilliam’s impressive vision of a ‘retro-future’ has lost a little of its original bloom but is still a very impressive work of art. Jonathan Pryce plays a bureaucrat in an Orwellian society who one day notices an error in paperwork that leads to the arrest of an innocent man.
Pryce attempts to correct this problem but only ends up creating even bigger ones that never go away, all the while dreaming of vacationing in exotic Brazil with the woman he loves. Intoxicating visuals and awe-inspiring set design will impress you the most, but the screenplay, which is heavily inspired by science-fiction writers of the past, is also worth noting.
I find Twelve Monkeys more enjoyable, but there’s no denying the influence of this critically acclaimed favourite.
Academy Award Nominations: Best Original Screenplay; Best Art Direction
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