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Director: Terry Gilliam
Cast: Christopher Plummer, Heath Ledger, Johnny Depp, Jude Law, Colin Farrell, Andrew Garfield, Verne Troyer, Lily Cole, Tom Waits
Run Time: 122 minutes
Country: Canada/United Kingdom
Year: 2009
Rating: PG (Violence, coarse language)
Terry Gilliam and his boundless imagination return with a film
already enshrined in cinema history as the final work of Heath
Ledger (Brokeback Mountain, The Dark Knight). When Gilliam
made the decision to bring in Johnny Depp (The Libertine,
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), Jude Law (My Blueberry
Nights, Sleuth) and Colin Farrell (In Bruges, Pride and Glory) 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 was a Gala Presentation
at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival®. Its
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 centurieslong
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 characteristic audacity, Gilliam
once again proves himself a consummate storyteller.
“The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus is a typically staunch
defence of the transformative power of the imagination
and its ability to change the world.” – Allan Hunter, Screen
International
Reviews: www.metacritic.com/film/titles/imaginariumofdoctorparnassus
Official Site: www.sonyclassics.com/theimaginariumofdoctorparnassus
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