Barbarella

Totally fun, sexy, imaginative, campy. In short, almost utterly delightful. Barbarella is like a Terry Gilliam movie but enjoyable.

Brazil (1985)

There is something about the quirkiness of Terry Gilliam's films that is not for me. I think to me it feels as though his movies really have no stakes. Like, they depict these terrible dystopias, but everyone is inured to how weird they are, so none of it really feels bad. No one is really in pain here. (That's not actually true, of course, but Gilliam doesn't dwell on the people in pain in his dystopias. His films are always about main characters who don't feel the pain staring in mute and unresponsive surprise at those who do feel it.) This film does boast a cool cast, including Ian Holm, Bob Hoskins, Ian Richardson, and especially Katherine Helmond, who is really really great. But it didn't matter. Brazil just isn't for me.

Andrew Garfield

Currently risking a slight overexposure, Mr. Garfield has recently played significant roles in The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (don't see it), and Boy A (see it!), and is currently doing excellent work in both The Social Network and (I've heard) in the film version of Never Let Me Go. He will also shortly be filling Tobey Maguire's shoes as the new Spider-Man, a development in which I have no interest whatsoever.

I'm a fan.

Terry Gilliam Is Crazy

Last night after we got home from having dinner, Tim, Trent and I decided to watch a movie. Now, The High and the Mighty and Lilies have both been sitting on top of my DVD player for, like, two months, but Tim didn't want to see the John Wayne movie and I didn't think Trent would like Lilies very much (just a hunch). At any rate, we decided to watch Terry Gilliam's The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, which I had never seen. (Tim and Trent had both seen it multiple times.)

This movie's almost twenty years old, so I expect most of you have seen it too, but I loved it. I thought it was crazy and fun. I thought the art direction was amazing, I loved how it was shot, and I loved how absolutely outrageous it was. Most of the story is completely and totally ridiculous. I had a total blast. I am not a big fan of the whole middle section on the Moon with Robin Williams (I am not much a fan of Williams' manic energy, as you probably know), but even that was mitigated by the fabulous presence of Valentina Cortese.

Anyway, I thought it was very fun.