Best Film by Terry Gilliam

SteveG wrote: Brazil, because he somehow got Robert De Niro to co star in that bizarre movie!

Not sure of his films, but his animations on Monty Python are KILLER.

I ought to vote Brazil - but Time Bandits is just SOOOOO funny!

Twelve Monkeys

moshkito wrote: Logan wrote:   ... Evil is a superb character, as are others, and I love this exchange between the child and The Supreme Being: Kevin: "You mean you let all those people die just to test your creation?" The Supreme Being: "Yes. You really are a clever boy." Kevin: "Why did they have to die?" The Supreme Being: "You might as well ask why we must have evil." Kevin: "Yes, why do we have to have evil?" The Supreme Being: "Ah, I think it's something to do with freewill." .... You know that this is a take on PC and DM's original, in BEDAZZLED, right? You really want to see that film, and if you can run a cassette recording of the dialogue ... and save it and one night just put on the dialogue ... and you will find all these lines in there and then some ... and the ending, is so prophetic, it's not funny!

No, I didn't/ don't (I hadn't read about or recognised that). You'll find similar sentiments from many sources. There's some pretty classic "problem of evil" type stuff going on in Time Bandits. I love the original Bedazzled, seen it a few times. I saw it first on late night TV while working in Japan (happened to be the first movie I caught there on TV in English with Japanese subs, which made it even more memorable). Anyway, been decades since I last saw it.

Edited by Logan - August 30 2019 at 11:25

Logan wrote:   ... Evil is a superb character, as are others, and I love this exchange between the child and The Supreme Being: Kevin: "You mean you let all those people die just to test your creation?" The Supreme Being: "Yes. You really are a clever boy." Kevin: "Why did they have to die?" The Supreme Being: "You might as well ask why we must have evil." Kevin: "Yes, why do we have to have evil?" The Supreme Being: "Ah, I think it's something to do with freewill." ....

AFlowerKingCrimson wrote: Snicolette wrote: I'm voting for Jabberwocky, re Terry Gilliam films,  although I've not seen every one here (about 1/3).  A Clockwork Orange was stunning and chilling at the same time. A Clockwork Orange was Stanley Kubrick not Terry Gilliam.

I'm convinced that Snicolette knows that A Clockwork Orange is Kubrick and that she was referring to my post that preceded it where I wrote:

Logan wrote: I could vote for a number of them happily, but Brazil is a masterpiece to me. It had a big effect on me as a teenager (that and A Clockwork Orange were my favourite films)."

When I think of Brazil, I also think of A Clockwork Orange, and in various ways I find Kubrick and Gilliam to be comparable directors.

Slartibartfast wrote: Damn.  I can't believe I haven't seen anything after Fear and Loathing.  I have a lot of catching up to do.  I piled on Brazil.

verslibre wrote: I can't believe mine is the only vote for Time Bandits.

I"m glad to see it get some voting love. While I voted for Brazil, which I ranked in my top five as a teenager and I still love decades later, I adore Time Bandits and have since I was a teenager (I love it even more as an adult, or man-child some might say). A while back I was subscribed to a service called Hollywood Suite, which showed many excellent films. In their On Demand service, they had Time Bandits. During my three month subscription to the service, I watched it again and again. For a sort of children's or family film, this is superb, and quite dark and cynical, even subversive. Without spoiling it, but the way the parents go... This film is right up there with another live action "children's" fave of around the same time, which is The Dark Crystal.

Evil is a superb character, as are others, and I love this exchange between the child and The Supreme Being:

Kevin: "You mean you let all those people die just to test your creation?"
The Supreme Being: "Yes. You really are a clever boy."
Kevin: "Why did they have to die?"
The Supreme Being: "You might as well ask why we must have evil."
Kevin: "Yes, why do we have to have evil?"
The Supreme Being: "Ah, I think it's something to do with freewill."

I love it. Later on in a Philosophy 100-type course we talked about the problem of evil and notions of free will, which brought that exchange to mind.

I think it's a wondrous, wonderful film. That said, it's weaker moments involved some of the Pythons as characters for me as that felt a little forced in to me, but I'm not complaining, love the film.

EDIT: To be honest, while I respect the film and enjoyed it, I've never really loved 12 Monkeys. I should return to it.

Edited by Logan - August 25 2019 at 17:16

Top three movies ever:

1. 12 Monkeys
2. The Fisher King
3. The Adventures of Baron Munchausen