The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009)

Réalisateur:

Terry Gilliam

Scénaristes:

Terry Gilliam (written by)
Charles McKeown (written by)

Date de sortie:

16 octobre 2009 (UK)

Genre:

Aventure | Fantasy | Mystère

Intrigue:

A traveling theater company gives its audience much more than they were expecting. |

Plot Keywords:

Parallel World | Death Of Cast Member | Old Man | Magical | Cult Favorite

Récompenses:

1 nomination

Avis des utilisateurs:

This ambitious project is often remarkable to look out but is ultimately muddled and ostentatious

Ensemble

Johnny Depp	...	Tony (1st transformation)
Heath Ledger	...	Tony
Colin Farrell	...	Tony (3rd transformation)
Jude Law	...	Tony (2nd transformation)
Christopher Plummer	...	Dr. Parnassus
Lily Cole	...	Valentina
Tom Waits	...	Mr. Nick
Andrew Garfield	...	Anton
Verne Troyer	...	Percy
Quinn Lord	...	9 Year Old Son
Paloma Faith	...	Sally
Cassandra Sawtell	...	Olga (unconfirmed)
Carrie Genzel	...	Journalist
Michael Eklund	...	Tony's Aid
Brad Dryborough	...	Repulsed Diner
Ryan Grantham	...	Little Anton
Johnny Harris	...	Policeman
Mark Benton	...	Dad
Simon Day	...	Inspector
Mackenzie Gray	...	Substitute Monk
Michael Jonsson	...	Paramedic #2
Fraser Aitcheson	...	Dancing Policeman
Ian A. Wallace	...	Fourth Monk
Richard Riddell	...	Martin
Peter New	...	Paramedic #1
Joseph Cintron	...	Monk
Vitaly Kravchenko	...	Piotr
John Snowden	...	Chauffer
Erika Conway	...	Mother at Puppet Show
Igor Ingelsman	...	Gregor
Richard Shanks	...	Martin's Friend
David Smallbone	...	Sally's friend #2

Autre(s) titre(s):

L'Imaginarium du Docteur Parnassus (France)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for violent images, some sensuality, language and smoking.

Durée:

122 min

Pays:

France | Canada | UK

Langue:

Anglais

Couleur:

Couleur

Rapport de forme:

1,85 : 1

Son:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Classification:

USA:PG-13 | Norway:11 | UK:12A | Ireland:12A | New Zealand:PG | Australia:PG | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Spain:7

Lieux de tournage:

Battersea Power Station, Battersea, London, England, UK

Société:

Davis-Films

Anecdotes:

After the death of Heath Ledger, production was shut down for a few months. Then it was re-started when Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell agreed to complete Ledger's role. The film's fantasy premise, and some clever rewrites, let the actors play a man whose appearance changes as he travels between imaginary worlds.

Guillemet:

Tony: [from trailer] Nothing is permanent, not even death.

Connexions De Film:

Références "Captain Planet and the Planeteers" (1990)

This ambitious project is often remarkable to look out but is ultimately muddled and ostentatious

Nobody makes a movie like Terry Gilliam. For better or worse, the director of Brazil, Twelve Monkeys and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas puts on screen whatever happens to be in his head. You can't expect coherence, plausibility or realism to enter into the proceedings; they are pushed aside for weird and wonderful images, fantasy sequences and warped stories. Imaginarium follows this trend. Too much, in fact. Gilliam's embellishments come off feeling self-indulgent and pretentious. The term 'overbearing' is synonymous with Gilliam at the best of times, but it fits the bill more than normal here. Nobody is asking for a sacrifice of artistic integrity, however a straighter line every now and then would serve him, and this film, well.

Gilliam's faults begin with his screenplay. Superfluous and bloated in many parts, it can never really find its feet due to extended scenes which are really just not necessary. The moral of the story is not only metaphorically hammered home but by the midway point becomes boring and monotonous to boot. We understand that regret can be a heavy burden to carry; is it necessary to remind us every minute of the entire 122 minute runtime? Repetitiveness aside, Gilliam at least manages to make the twists and turns unpredictable and fun to watch, the final reveal about Tony is a corker and most definitely unexpected.

Witnessing the final performance of Ledger is emotionally confusing. You desperately want this to be a turn worthy of remembering him by, the ultimate swansong to match The Dark Knight, yet deep down it is apparent this is nowhere near his best work. Perhaps if he got to finish the role things might have been different, as it stands Depp, Law and Farrell admirably flesh out the remaining of his role. Playing the eponymous Doc, Plummer is solid and reliable, if never overly outstanding whilst newcomer Cole is intriguing as the porcelain-like heroine; should be interesting to see how she fares with roles that require more than just reacting. The absolute standout is Waits, his smooth and arrogant Devil is worth the price of admission all on his own.

This ambitious project is often remarkable to look out but is ultimately muddled and ostentatious.

2.5 out of 5 (1 - Rubbish, 2 - Ordinary, 3 - Good, 4 - Excellent, 5 - Classic)