SPOILERS
I got this movie at the Katonah library this March. I watched and thought, "Wow that was pretty good.' The movie was better than I had hoped for. I liked it so much I bought the Criterion Collection's massive DVD. I watched it again with Gilliam's commentary and liked it even more. Then I saw it with a friend and I liked it even more. That was when it became my favorite movie.
Why do I love it so much? It's depressing, funny, weird, satirical, visually stunning, well told, and you notice more with each viewing (ex. the random explosions are breaks in the system not terrorists). Look at the ending. That is the only ending that should be there. Sam is permanently insane, but in his mind he is with the girl of his dreams (who is dead in the real world) living in the middle of the country. The samurai dream sequences are wonderfully surreal and could have been made into a separate movie. (Check out the Gilliam approved book Dark Knights and Holy Fools. There is a very weird dream scene where the sky falls into darkness as Sam is rescuing Jill.) Robert DeNiro provides a great role as Harry Tuttle and Michael Palin is superb as the brutal torturer/kind caring family man Jack Lint. The story is disturbing and depressing as it should be.
Thank God it came out in America after the controversy. Many people say that Star Wars set the system and Brazil changed it. Very true. Sheinberg thankfully didn't get his marketable-audience-friendly-happy-Hollywood movie he was trying to get.
Once again, the greatest movie ever made. If you didn't like it the first time, you'll love it the second time. Gilliam Rules! American Edit: A. European/Director's Cut: A+. Sheinberg Edit: C-
Rated R for brief graphic violence, disturbing themes, sexuality/nudity, and some language.
I got this movie at the Katonah library this March. I watched and thought, "Wow that was pretty good.' The movie was better than I had hoped for. I liked it so much I bought the Criterion Collection's massive DVD. I watched it again with Gilliam's commentary and liked it even more. Then I saw it with a friend and I liked it even more. That was when it became my favorite movie.
Why do I love it so much? It's depressing, funny, weird, satirical, visually stunning, well told, and you notice more with each viewing (ex. the random explosions are breaks in the system not terrorists). Look at the ending. That is the only ending that should be there. Sam is permanently insane, but in his mind he is with the girl of his dreams (who is dead in the real world) living in the middle of the country. The samurai dream sequences are wonderfully surreal and could have been made into a separate movie. (Check out the Gilliam approved book Dark Knights and Holy Fools. There is a very weird dream scene where the sky falls into darkness as Sam is rescuing Jill.) Robert DeNiro provides a great role as Harry Tuttle and Michael Palin is superb as the brutal torturer/kind caring family man Jack Lint. The story is disturbing and depressing as it should be.
Thank God it came out in America after the controversy. Many people say that Star Wars set the system and Brazil changed it. Very true. Sheinberg thankfully didn't get his marketable-audience-friendly-happy-Hollywood movie he was trying to get.
Once again, the greatest movie ever made. If you didn't like it the first time, you'll love it the second time. Gilliam Rules! American Edit: A. European/Director's Cut: A+. Sheinberg Edit: C-
Rated R for brief graphic violence, disturbing themes, sexuality/nudity, and some language.