My all-time favorite director, Terry Gilliam, is back with a vengeance! His latest, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, is rumored to have a wide release on January 8, though I cannot find any official source for that rumor. I certainly hope that it comes to Bend theaters eventually; I really do not want to wait until its DVD release.
Gilliam is the director who can't seem to get a break. Despite his successful delivery of Time Bandits and Brazil to the studios, along with Twelve Monkeys and The Fisher King (both with Academy-Award-nominated performances), all any financiers can seem to remember him for is The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, the textbook example of a Hollywood fiasco, much of which was not his fault. And which also happens to be my favorite movie. I'd hire the man in a snap if I had the budget.
Then there was The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, which fell apart barely a week into the shooting schedule because of an actor's spinal problems, test flights by the Spanish air force, and a hailstorm to rival that of the biblical plague upon Egypt. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas was simply too good: Critics and audiences agreed the sensation of being on a drug trip and subsequent withdrawals was so well portrayed that it was impossible to watch. And The Brothers Grimm fell victim to the excessive tampering of the Weinstein Brothers, who basically made Terry wish he had never directed the film.
Now with The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, Terry faced the death of Heath Ledger halfway through shooting. From all reports however, including an interview with Terry that I read, if you're going to lose an actor, they lost Ledger at a "good" time, and were able to craft a creative solution to the problem.
Loving The Adventures of Baron Munchausen as much as I do, I am positively giddy to see The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. The trailer makes it look like the wild fantasy adventures I love so much.
I hesitate to include links to pages I do not control because the link may become obsolete someday, but here it is. Oh, the joy!
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus Trailer
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3 Producer's Notes:
I was told exclusively by Sony Picture Classics that it will be released nationwide BEGINNING January 8. This is not wide release, it means that the film will play around the country on a platform limited arthouse theater release and will begin to expand on January 8, 2010. Hope this helps.
http://imaginariumofdrparnassus.com/blog/2009/11/16/sony-picture-classics-says-dr-parnassus-will-have-nationwide-release-in-early-january-2010/
Sony will be giving me a list of theaters in which it will be released January 8th shortly after the holiday which I will then post on the homepage of my site.
Isn't the movie just incredible!!!!
Hey, did you see "Lost in La Mancha"? If not, DEFINITELY check it out. Gave me a whole new appreciation for Gilliam. The extras are totally worth it too.
I did see "Lost in La Mancha" which was astounding. I think Gilliam might have saved the film if instead of sitting there in disbelief he had talked to the producers about re-contracting with a new main actor, but there was still the hailstorm and the air force to deal with. The poor guy.
I want to see what he can do with $100 million and no studio interference someday.
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