imageTerry Gilliam’s latest offering, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, has the sad honour of being Heath Ledger’s last feature film. Ledger’s death during a break in shooting left Gilliam with a dilemma and financial pressure - should he continue the film without the star or shut it down. Aided by some help from Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell the film was completed, dividing up Ledger’s part amongst these three seasoned actors. Beautiful but structurally flawed, the film has been undoubtedly scarred by the loss. How much of Gilliam’s vision has been lost by the reworking is hard to say.
The script for The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus came from the brilliantly quirky minds of Terry Gilliam and Charles McKeown, a partnership that sprouted Brazil and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen. Taking inspiration from the tale of Faust, the catalyst for the film’s action is a pact with the Devil (Tom Waits). Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) possesses an ability to guide people’s imaginations. This gift has been developed into a rag-tag travelling circus of sorts, the Imaginarium of the film’s title. Parnassus is accompanied by his exquisite daughter, Valentina (Lily Cole), Percy (Verne Troyer) his cynical sidekick and Anton (Andrew Garfield) the underappreciated tout for the Imaginarium’s performances.
The script for The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus came from the brilliantly quirky minds of Terry Gilliam and Charles McKeown, a partnership that sprouted Brazil and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen. Taking inspiration from the tale of Faust, the catalyst for the film’s action is a pact with the Devil (Tom Waits). Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) possesses an ability to guide people’s imaginations. This gift has been developed into a rag-tag travelling circus of sorts, the Imaginarium of the film’s title. Parnassus is accompanied by his exquisite daughter, Valentina (Lily Cole), Percy (Verne Troyer) his cynical sidekick and Anton (Andrew Garfield) the underappreciated tout for the Imaginarium’s performances.
click here to read my full review at Trespass
